An eleven-year battle over gay rights in Cincinnati will come to a head on November 2, when voters will decide the fate of Issue 3, a ballot measure calling for the repeal of an ordinance passed in 1993 that prohibits the city council from creating a gay rights ordinance.
Cincinnati is only city in the United States with an ordinance that prohibits the city from granting rights to gays, lesbians or bisexuals. The pertinent ordinance is known as Article XII.
According to the Cincinnati Post, the group spearheading the effort to overturn Article XII, Citizens to Restore Fairness, has raised $556,244 to advocate the passing of Issue 3 – including a $10,000 donation from a church and a matching donation from former Cincinnati mayor Jerry Springer.
Equal Rights Not Special Rights, the group attempting to retain the relevant ordinance, has raised only $145,081, almost all of which comes from anti-porn activists Citizens for Community Values.
Supporters of the measure to repeal Article XII include the current mayor, the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce, the local media and a few prominent local church leaders.
