State Rep. Frankel addresses LGBT rights at Pitt

A modest audience visited the Teplitz Courtroom in the Barco Law Building yesterday to hear… A modest audience visited the Teplitz Courtroom in the Barco Law Building yesterday to hear State Rep. Dan Frankel address lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual issues, among other topics.

Frankel’s speech, hosted by the Pitt Law Democrats, the Criminal Law Society and Pitt OUTlaw, made for a personal and informal meeting between the congressman and a few concerned and interested citizens.

About 30 people showed up to hear Frankel, who represents Pennsylvania’s 23rd District, which includes parts of the Oakland campus. The representative’s main topic was his recent efforts as the author and chief sponsor of House Bill 300, legislation that would extend the Human Relations Act to prohibit discrimination by employers, landlords and public officials on the basis of sexual orientation.

Currently, the Human Relations Act only protects citizens from discrimination based on race and gender.

Frankel said that LGBT individuals are the only group of people who are subject to “legalized discrimination.” He added that civil rights protections need to be established by the state legislature because anti-discrimination laws among counties can vary, and people should be able to relocate without worrying about losing their rights.

Members of Pitt’s Rainbow Alliance could not immediately be reached for comment.

Last year, House Bill 300 attracted 80 co-sponsors and made it out of the State Government Committee. “The bill was poised for a vote, but the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference convinced many of the representatives to add hostile amendments to it,” Frankel said.

Frankel said these amendments included exemptions that would allow certain residential and commercial landlords to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation.

Officials from the Catholic Conference were not immediately available for comment following the speech.

The bill never made it to a full House vote.

Frankel said that he is still committed to House Bill 300. He plans to reintroduce the bill and work with advocacy groups such as the ACLU in order to gain support for it.

The representative added that even though a majority of Pennsylvanians support expanding the Human Relations Act to protect LGBT individuals, he is “not particularly optimistic” about the future of these efforts.

Frankel cited the possibilities of Republicans winning the governorship and majorities in Congress as his reasons.

From there, Frankel elaborated on his thoughts about the upcoming election. He said that he is worried about what appears to be an “enthusiasm gap” between the two parties in which Republicans seem to have an upper hand.

He added that “state governments have a lot of influence over day-to-day life” and that people ought to get energized about midterm elections, even though they are “not as sexy as elections for the President.”

Pennsylvania’s transportation infrastructure was the last major issue Frankel discussed. He said that “we are facing a comprehensive transportation crisis in our state,” citing that Pennsylvania  has “6,000 seriously deficient bridges and thousands of deficient roads.” He added that while environmental issues are important, “we can’t cannibalize our mass transit systems.”

In order to address these issues, Frankel suggested raising the tax on the sale of gasoline, which hasn’t been raised since 1999, to help repair Pennsylvania’s roads and bridges. He also said that the state could adjust for inflation fees on drivers’ licensing and vehicle registration to solve funding problems.

“If [I am considered] a tax-and-spend liberal, that’s fine,” Frankel said.

He added that he doesn’t like how Congressmen “get assessed on their ability to cut taxes every year” because “strategically, you have to raise revenue.”