Editorial: It’s time for Carmel to act on LGBT rights

After weeks of intense debate, it’s time for the Carmel City Council to take a strong stand against discrimination in their community.

On Monday, the council, thanks largely to the leadership of Mayor Jim Brainard, is scheduled to vote on a civil rights ordinance that would prohibit discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodation because of a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.

The council should vote overwhelmingly to approve the ordinance, without amendment, for two overriding reasons.

Reason one, it would send an unmistakable message that Carmel is a welcoming, inclusive community. That’s not merely a symbolic gesture; it’s an important signal for Indiana communities to send after all of the negative attention that the state attracted with this year’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act controversy.

Major employers in Central Indiana say that the lingering effects of RFRA continue to hurt their recruitment of talented workers from outside the state. Business owners and corporate executives also take Indiana’s damaged image into account in considering relocation to the state.

That damage to Indiana’s image was, in part, what prompted several other communities — including Columbus, Muncie, Terre Haute, Whitestown and Zionsville — in recent months to adopt legal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender citizens.

As an economic power in the region, and as a leader on many quality of life issues, it’s especially important for Carmel join the growing list of cities that have taken a stand against discrimination.

Reason two, passing the ordinance is simply the right thing to do. Today in Carmel, as in most places in Indiana, a gay man can be fired or denied employment solely because of his sexual orientation. A transgender woman can be turned away from a place to live because of her gender identity. A same-sex couple can be denied service in a restaurant. And they have no legal recourse to fight back against such discrimination.

That’s wrong. And Carmel’s elected leaders need to fix such gaping holes in the city’s civil rights protections on Monday night.