The Human Rights Campaign has adjusted two scores in North Texas after errors were discovered in the cities of Irving and Dallas regarding their LGBT-inclusive policies.
Last week, Dallas Voice pointed out that Irving received credit in the nondiscrimination law section for protections for sexual orientation and gender identity in the county’s government policy, but Dallas County has that protection of county employees only; it’s not countywide.
Cathryn Oakley, the main author on the MEI, followed up with Dallas Voice on Monday to say the credit for the county policy for employees, which was also awarded to Dallas, was an error, bringing Irving’s score to 10, not 16. Dallas’ score won’t change for that section because the max points for that section was 18, which the city received for its citywide nondiscrimination ordinance.
But Dallas also received points for a contractor equal benefits ordinance. While the city of Dallas has a contractor nondiscrimination ordinance, it doesn’t mention anything about those contractors offering benefits to its employees. Losing those points lowered Dallas’ score to an 81.
Last year, Arlington was awarded points for protecting city employees against discrimination regarding sexual orientation, but those points were removed this year. While Arlington listed sexual orientation on its website under diversity, the protection is not city policy.
The MEI, now in its second year, ranks cities on their policies and practices that are LGBT-inclusive, showing how protected city employees and citizens are and how much their city leadership values equality.
HRC researches cities and then sends that info to officials for input and changes. Oakley said she was in touch with officials from Dallas, but wasn’t sure if contact was made with Irving.
