Duluth Council Talks Commission to Focus On Concerns of LGBTQ+ Community

Council read an ordinance which would establish the Duluth LGBTQ+ Commission. 

DULUTH, Minn.- A new commission focused on the concerns of Duluth’s LGBTQ+ community was on the docket of Monday nights Duluth City Council meeting.

Council read an ordinance by President Gary Anderson which would establish the Duluth Nonbinary, Queer, Trans, Two Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Intersex and Asexual Commission.

It would advise city administration and council on issues impacting that part of the city’s population.

Council President Anderson, an openly gay man himself, championed LGBTQ+ rights at the beginning of his career, including the eventual legalization of gay marriage which came in 2015.

But still after that, he said the work for equal treatment of the community continues.

“Marriage doesn’t mean a lot if you’re not able to feel secure in your job, if you’re not able to feel secure in your home, if you don’t feel safe to go to seek out healthcare,” Anderson said.

But he said he’s excited at the step the potential commission could take in that fight. “I’m hoping that this commission will help alleviate some of those concerns for many members of our community.”

The ordinance got a first read by the Council Monday, and if no amendments are proposed they will vote to approve the new commission next week.

It would join a list of others including the city’s Human Rights, Indigenous, and African Heritage Commissions.