Lexington gets ‘perfect score’ for LGBTQ rights; highest score of cities in Kentucky
Lexington has received a perfect 100 score from the Human Rights Campaign, a national civil rights organization, for its laws and policies to protect and support lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities.
The city received a total score of 106 for additional steps it has taken over the last few years to benefit the LGBTQ community. It’s the highest ranking of any city in Kentucky. A 100 is considered a perfect score but cities can earn up to 122 additional points for programs and services.
“We’ve worked hard to create an atmosphere welcoming all people,” said Mayor Linda Gorton. “That hard work has resulted in the highest score received by a Kentucky city.”
It’s the first time since the rankings began eight years ago that Lexington has earned a perfect score.
In 2020, it received a 95 out of 100.
The Human Rights Campaign scores cities based on laws, policies, services and programs for the LGBTQ community. Lexington received high marks despite Kentucky not having a statewide LGBTQ nondiscrimination law. The Human Rights Campaign evaluated more than 506 cities across the country.
Louisville has received a perfect score for several years.
Other evaluated Kentucky cities include Berea, Bowling Green, Covington, Frankfort, Morehead and Owensboro. Covington’s score was 96. The lowest scoring Kentucky city was Owensboro with 18.
In 2019, Gorton created a work group to review the Human Rights Campaign score and provide recommendations on how Lexington can improve.
“The goal was to get to 100,” Gorton said.
The city has made multiple changes since 2019, including passing, in May 2021, a ban on conversion therapy for those 18 and under. Other changes the city made included strengthening antidiscrimination language in all contracts. It supports a myriad of organizations that serve the LGBTQ community, including Arbor Youth Services, which does outreach for LGBTQ homeless youth. The city also includes sexual orientation as part of its diversification efforts for the city’s boards and commissions, Gorton said.
The Human Rights Campaign score is an important tool to recruit new residents and businesses, Gorton said.
“Businesses that are looking to locate or relocate to a city, they look at this,” Gorton said of the Human Rights Campaign’s rankings. “The cities that are most successful in attracting businesses, conventions and residents — the best ones — are the ones that say, ‘We welcome you and here’s the things that we do to show that we are inclusive.’”
Gorton was on the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council when it passed the Fairness Ordinance in 1999. It was the first city in Kentucky to pass an antidiscrimination law to protect the LGBTQ community. That ordinance was the starting point, Gorton said. In 2014, while Gorton was vice mayor, she sponsored changes to the city’s health insurance to allow domestic partner benefits.
Fayette County Circuit Court Judge Ernesto Scorsone was one of the leaders who pushed the city to enact the Fairness Ordinance in 1999.
“Building on the record of former Mayors Pam Miller and Jim Gray, Mayor Gorton has gotten us to the top! The message is clear: Lexington is a fair and welcoming community for everyone,” Scorsone said.
Debra Hensley, a former council member and longtime LGBTQ advocate, also spearheaded efforts to get the Fairness Ordinance passed. The city has come a long way over the past 22 years, she said.
“It is times like this that I am so proud of all that we have accomplished, and I look forward to future celebrations of equity and inclusion,” Hensley said.
Lexington’s score has dramatically improved since its first rating in 2013. That year it scored a 53.
The full Human Rights Campaign Municipal Equality Index score can be found at www.hrc.org/mei.
This story was originally published November 18, 2021 at 2:46 PM.
