Dallas City Councilman Scott Griggs addresses LULAC #4871—The Dallas Rainbow Council on Thursday at Havana on Cedar Springs Road.
Dallas City Councilman Scott Griggs says he wants to obtain signatures from eight or more council members — a majority — before he brings forward resolutions in support of marriage equality and statewide LGBT employment protections.
Only five signatures would be needed to place the resolutions on the agenda for a council vote, but Griggs said because it’s an important issue, “You want to know where you are going into it.”
Dallas Voice reported in December that seven of 15 council members have said they support the concept of the resolutions, which Griggs now hopes will pass sometime this spring.
Griggs said he met with Mayor Mike Rawlings recently to discuss the resolutions, which the mayor has not yet publicly endorsed. Griggs called it a “positive meeting” but would not comment on whether he thinks Rawlings will come around.
“I’m not in a position to speak for him or any of my colleagues on a particular vote,” Griggs said, adding that he’s “very optimistic” the resolutions will pass the council.
Griggs made the comments Thursday night during an appearance at a meeting of Dallas’ gay LULAC chapter at Havana on Cedar Springs Road.
“We’ve seen that this is a council that’s beginning to address important issues, whether it’s education, whether it’s talking about gun control or domestic violence, and along that line a really important civil rights issue to talk about is marriage equality,” Griggs told the group.
Asked by a LULAC member why the council should pass the resolutions given that the city can’t legalize same-sex marriage, Griggs said he feels they could help sway the U.S. Supreme Court, which is set to hear two marriage equality cases this year.
“I think it’s important to be leaders and to join all the voices that we’re seeing around the country,” Griggs said. “We really need a public outcry, and we need everyone, whatever you can do to make a difference. We can’t change the rules. We’re the city, we’re not the feds, we’re not the state, but what we can do? And when you can’t take action to change something, you definitely have not only the responsibility but the duty to do everything you can do, and in this case that’s influence the process. And certainly the ninth-largest city in the U.S. coming out with these resolutions will give our voices and our support and help influence the process.”
