The Dallas City Council on Tuesday
unanimously approved an amendment to its anti-discrimination
ordinance to specifically include transgender people.
The law, approved in 2002, included
transgender people as part of a broad definition of sexual
orientation, which it describes as “an individual's real or
perceived orientation as heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual or an
individual's real or perceived gender identity.”
The rewrite separates sexual
orientation from gender identity.
“We're a very diverse city and we
want to make sure everyone is protected,” Dallas Mayor Mike
Rawlings said.
The move comes a week after voters in
Houston repealed a similar ordinance. The campaign to repeal that
law falsely claimed that its inclusion of transgender people allowed
sexual predators to enter women's bathrooms.
(Related: Annise
Parker pledges to revive Houston LGBT protections.)
State Senator Don Huffines, a
first-term Republican, attacked the ordinance as “Obama &
Pelosi style sneak-attack governance” and called
for its repeal.
“Houston voters soundly said NO to
men in women's bathrooms. Dallas' new sneak-attack LGBT ordinance
must be repealed & carefully reviewed,” he tweeted.
Dallas City Council member Phillip
Kingston tweeted in response: “Went through a year of public
discussion and makes no change to the existing public policy of
Dallas. Stop lying.”