LONDON CITY COUNCIL CAPITULATES TO GAY PRIDE DEMAND

LONDON, June 5 (LSN) – Following legal advice, London City Council voted to proclaim a Gay Pride Day for the city, ending a three-year struggle. Last year, the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) sided with The Homophile Association of London Ontario (HALO), a gay activist group, and found Mayor Dianne Haskett and the city guilty of discrimination for not making the proclamation in 1995. The Commission levied heft fines against the mayor and the city, and ordered them to proclaim the controversial event if asked again.  Haskett refused to vote on the question this time around, citing a conflict of interest. Council had received legal advice indicating anyone who voted against the proclamation might be found in contempt of the OHRC ruling. Deputy mayor Anne Marie DeCicco apologizingly told the citizens of London that Council felt it had no choice but to issue the proclamation, given the legal situation.  Haskett’s dramatic “conviction” by the OHRC came in the thick of preparations for municipal elections last year. In an unprecedented move, she did not actively campaign, as a sign of protest against the ruling,  saying the people of London could judge her record as it stood. In spite of a well-orchestrated, high-  profile campaign against her waged by the local media and cultural elite, Haskett won a second term by an even greater margin, with twice as many votes as her nearest rival.