Categories: NewsSports

Councilman invites gays affected by discrimination to Philly

City Councilman Mark Squilla issued an open letter Thursday to the gay residents of Indiana and Arkansas, saying that if they experienced discrimination due to new religious freedom laws in their home states that they are welcome to move to Philadelphia.

“We’re all equal here,” Squilla wrote. “Philadelphia was built on that.”

The letter, written by Squilla, whose district includes the Gayborhood in Center City, was signed by Mayor Michael Nutter and the other 16 members of Council.

Pennsylvania itself has a law on the books which is similar to the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, but Squilla said those attitudes aren’t held in the City of Brotherly Love.

“Philadelphia has long been a welcoming destination for LGBTQ people despite a less progressive environment elsewhere in the Commonwealth,” Squilla said in a statement. “The national outcry over RFRA in Indiana and Arizona make it clearer than ever that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identification is 100 percent un-American.”

Read the full text of Squilla’s letter above.

Metro Philadelphia

Recent Posts

Revised Bus Revolution plan set to go for SEPTA board approval this month

The Bus Revolution plan has been finalized, and SEPTA’s board, which previously put off a…

7 hours ago

76ers vs Knicks: Betting preview, predictions & TV Schedule

The Philadelphia 76ers are back home in Philly to take on the New York Knicks…

9 hours ago

Keep New York out of Philly: 76ers owners buy 2,000 tickets for Thursday’s game

The Philadelphia 76ers off-court strategy heading into Game 6 of their NBA playoff series is…

10 hours ago

Lightning in a Bottle: Will Shipley Ready to Contribute for Eagles

The one highlight the Philadelphia Eagles chose to broadcast of Will Shipley after they drafted…

10 hours ago

How “the Philadelphia way” has turned the Eagles into a premier franchise

The Philadelphia Eagles haven’t always been a premier franchise in the NFL. After years of…

11 hours ago

Vendor that mishandled Pennsylvania virus data to pay $2.7 million in federal whistleblower case

By MICHAEL RUBINKAM Associated Press A large staffing firm that performed COVID-19 contact tracing for…

13 hours ago

This website uses cookies.