Equal Rights Ordinance draws dueling rallies

Gay, lesbian, bisexual and trangender supporters gather outside Sunday's ﻿rally at Grace Community Church. Gay, lesbian, bisexual and trangender supporters gather outside Sunday's ﻿rally at Grace Community Church. Photo: Eric Kayne Photo: Eric Kayne Image 1 of / 17 Caption Close Equal Rights Ordinance draws dueling rallies 1 / 17 Back to Gallery

Social conservatives lambasted Mayor Annise Parker and her now-withdrawn plan to subpoena sermons of local pastors who opposed Houston's Equal Rights Ordinance at a rally Sunday that doubled as a galvanizing political event two days before Election Day.

An estimated 6,000 supporters descended on Houston's Grace Community Church to keep national attention squarely on Parker for committing what they called political overreach and an attack on religious liberty. In an indoor amphitheater with a massive American flag, religious leaders called on Parker to "let the people vote" by putting the ordinance on next November's ballot, a chant that evolved into a political crescendo as the event's energy escalated.

"This was never really about subpoenas. It was not about sermons or speeches," said Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, at the "I Stand Sunday" rally. "It was about political intimidation. It was about trying to silence the voices of the churches and the pastors."

A few blocks away from the billboard outside Grace Community Church that read "Don't mess with Houston pulpits," a group of LGBT supporters held signs that read, "Stand for love."

"You cannot use your faith as a blank check to discriminate against others," said Tiffani Bishop, 33, a state lead of GetEqual Texas, which organized the demonstration.

The City Council passed HERO in May to prevent discrimination against gay and transgender residents. Violators of the ordinance, which applies to businesses, private employers, housing, city employment and city contracting, can be fined up to $5,000.

Legal battle

Opponents gathered 50,000 signatures to force a repeal referendum onto the November ballot, but Parker and City Attorney David Feldman disqualified thousands of entries, saying they didn't keep with the city's legal standards. Opponents are now challenging the removal of the signatures in court, claiming the city attorney had illegally inserted himself into the petition verification process. The first hearing is scheduled for January.

As part of the discovery phase in the lawsuit, Parker and Feldman issued subpoenas in September asking for the sermons of five pastors who led the opposition to the ordinance to see if they provided their congregates instructions on filling out the anti-HERO petition.

Public pressure from the pastors' allies caused Parker to first narrow the types of subpoenaed documents and then to retract the subpoenas entirely last week.

In the short-term, the rally's organizers said the best they could do was elect leaders who defended religious liberty. Attendees heard video messages from Rick Santorum and Ted Cruz and received a flyer listing all officials and candidates who supported the event, almost all of whom are Republicans.

The local Republican Party has sensed that the HERO ordinance could also politically motivate their base voters. After the subpoenas were issued, the party began advertising on the radio and sent mailers that framed Tuesday's election as a chance to send a message to Parker and her Democratic allies that they rejected the HERO ordinance.

"The City of Houston's use of the legal system to intimidate local pastors is just plain wrong. This blatant abuse of power is a reminder why we need fair and impartial judges," said state senate candidate Paul Bettencourt in the 30-second radio spot. "Republican judges follow the plain words of Texas law and don't legislate from the bench."

Sunday's event reinforced that partisan purpose: 36 hours before the polls opened in a race where some Republicans worry that conservatives may stay at home, the rally encouraged Republican base voters not to take complacent comfort in Greg Abbott's 15-point lead in recent polling.

"We have not just the right to vote, but if we love God, we have a responsibility to vote," said former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, as he criticized politically apathetic churchgoers. "Now we are beginning to reap what we have sown. And it is time we plant some new citizenship in the grounds of the United States of America."

Speakers on Sunday evening tried to tighten that connection between faith and politics ahead of Election Day, though they cautioned that not all social ills could be solved with a vote.

"It is time for us to wake up from our slumber," said Ronnie Floyd, the president of the Southern Baptist Convention, to wild applause. "It is time for us that we understand that our greatest problem is not in the White House nor is it in the statehouse, but it is in the church house of Jesus Christ."

Grace Community Church member Laura Lemmon, 25, said she already cast an early ballot but hopes the controversy will cause people to think about where they stand.

"I feel like even if it wasn't my church and our pastor wasn't subpoenaed, it's still an important issue," she said.

Attendee Montie Watkins, 73, said she hoped that the HERO subpoenas would spur conservative energy as the election season closed.

"I pray that Mayor Parker has awakened the sleeping giant," Watkins said. "The only reason why I'm politically active is because my faith."

Different opinion

A far different message was projected at a smaller counter-protest earlier Sunday in Montrose, where leaders in Houston's gay community collected clothing for disadvantaged LGBT youth. Some supporters of the HERO ordinance there said the five subpoenaed pastors had politically capitalized on the controversy.

"These five pastors have done a great job of portraying themselves as victims," said Kristen Capps, 47, who volunteered to help Houston's LGBT homeless youth. "The type of rhetoric that is going to be heard at this event tonight is what creates the need for this."