A settlement between the Downtown Hope Center and the Municipality of Anchorage has secured the Anchorage women’s shelter’s right to set rules for its overnight shelter.
Those rules, at present, don’t include allowing men in the door. Nor transgendered individuals, for that matter. Women are sleeping on mats on the floor at the center, in very close proximity and many of them are highly traumatized women who have been living on the street and have significant mental and emotional health needs.
The Hope Center and its legal allies, Alliance for Defending Freedom, sued the Municipality after the Anchorage Equal Rights Commission tried to enforce a municipal equal rights laws that include gay and transgendered people as protected classes.
A man, who claimed to be a women, was refused entrance to the shelter in January of 2017, setting off a series of legal actions. The man, who now apparently presents himself as a woman, filed the initial complaint with the Equal Rights Commission, saying that he had been discriminated against at a place that provides “public accommodation.” He alleged he was refused entry because he is transgendered and cannot be refused service.
At one point, the Equal Rights Commission sued the lawyer who defended the center — Kevin Clarkson — for talking about the case publicly with the media. Clarkson is now the state’s Attorney General. Those charges were later dropped by the Municipality.
Now, Anchorage will pay the Hope Center’s legal team Alliance for Defending Freedom $100,000 to cover its attorneys’ fees and to end the legal dispute, and has agreed that the women’s shelter may not only set its rules, but is allowed to discuss its rules, post its rules, and enforce them.
[Read: Transgender files complaint against women’s shelter]
The Southern Poverty Law Center has designated the Alliance for Defending Freedom a “hate group,” because of its defense of heterosexuality and traditional marriage.
Thank goodness someone FINALLY stood up to the bullies!
Yep, just like Hobby Lobby.
A positive direction and trend, makes one hopeful that just maybe logic, reason, common sense may indeed prevail.
Let’s hear it for “common sense”! Perhaps the tide is turning on all the crazy shit that has been happening!????
Can someone explain to me why the Anchorage taxpayers should have to fork over one thin dime for this action which was ridiculous from the beginning. The defendants were the Municipality, the Anchorage Equal Rights Commission (AERC), and Pamela Baseler, both in her capacity as Executive Director of the AERC and as an individual. She apparently has not been released from personal liability nor should she be. If there is an under the table deal to indemnify her, let the Mayor explain why this is appropriate. I am all ears.
Let Ms. Baseler dig into her jeans and fork over the $100,000 she has cost the taxpayers. She is the responsible party.
Can we please return to a little more common sense? The whole concept of accommodating a protected class of men who identify as women such that they would be housed together with women, especially in this application of protecting abused women, is patently absurd. Go pretend to be whoever or whatever you want. But do not expect me to accommodate your fantasy at the expense of women, whether it is in a shelter, in the sports arena or anywhere but Hollywood.
Thank you for overturning the attempt to normalize abnormal behavior.
We need to Follow up on why the MOA deep pockets pursued this issue?
I totally missed the fact that Berkobrake was suing a NON PROFIT Women’s Shelter.
I assume it was the ACLU. Let a non governmental entity pursue outrageous claims of equality.
So look at the settlement;
$100K to the Outa State Law Firm
$1 to the Women’s Shelter.
Hummmm.
This is indicative of the way the Crazies at the MOA spend our Tax Money. And the Bums still own the streets of Anchorage. Really.
For some, their hearts are in the right place, so it’s okay. For the others, their cause is righteous (destroying western civ) and we are just filler.
I can’t believe I have to pay for this nonsense.
Body dysphoria is a mental illness. For most of human history, we tried to help people who were delusional-now we try and force reality to change, so as not to disturb the delusion.
Madness.
The people pushing these policies are more ill than those with the delusion.
Comments are closed.