- Ken Mayfield
Earlier we quoted openly gay Dallas County District Clerk Gary Fitzsimmons as saying that County Commissioner Ken Mayfield is “the most homophobic elected official in Dallas County.”
Now Mayfield, a Republican, has responded by attacking Fitzsimmons, a Democrat, for being short.
The Dallas Morning News picked up our report and sought a comment from Mayfield. According to the DMN, Mayfield responded by calling Fitzsimmons “a little man with a little mind.”
Mayfield also insisted he’s not anti-gay and challenged Fitzsimmons to give examples of his allleged homophobia. Well, allow us to share just one:
In 1995, Mayfield and two other commissioners wrote a letter to 43 local doctors urging them to support the county’s ban on distribution of condoms by the Health Department to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS. Here’s what Mayfield and the two other commissioners wrote, according to an article that appeared in The DMN on Friday, June 16, 1995.
“We don’t want anyone, especially anyone in authority, telling our children or future grandchildren that it’s an approved or acceptable lifestyle to be a homosexual, a prostitute or a drug user,” the three commissioners wrote. “And, we don’t intend to be the vehicle through which others are given this message.”
Mayfield continued to support the condom ban until last year, when he opposed a measure that successfully lifted it.
Mayfield’s Democratic opponent this year, Dr. Elba Garcia, helped push through two major pro-equality measures during her time on the Dallas City Council. The first was a citywide ordinance that prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation in employment, housing, and public accommodations. The second was benefits for the domestic partners of gay and lesbian employees.
Mayfield’s ouster and Garcia’s election would be a godsend to our local community. She and her husband Domingo Garcia have been longtime supporters of the LGBT community. That’s just one of the important reasons everyone needs to get out and vote. If you want to see a statewide difference, cast a vote against incumbent Gov. Rick Perry. Like Mayfield, he ain’t for us.
This kind of thing is exactly why we need to be at the polls in record numbers. Local elections aren’t sexy, but they affect our lives on a daily basis much more than national elections. Get out an vote and send Mayfield home packing!