How do Georgia’s congressmen stack up on LGBT issues?
July 31, 2009 at 6:14 pm by Patrick Saunders in NewsSouthern Voice posted a story today breaking down how Georgia’s representatives in the U.S. House and Senate stand on LGBT legislation, as well as their scores from the Human Rights Campaign.
Not surprisingly, it usually comes down to geography, with the strongest support by those representing the Atlanta area and the least support by those representing rural areas. Here’s the full chart.
Rep. John Lewis, D-Atlanta, continues to take the lead on pro-equality issues but Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Decatur, has quickly joined alongside Lewis. The pair have become two of Georgia’s — and the nation’s — largest voices in Congress in moving pro-equality legislation forward. They were the only two members of the Georgia delegation to vote no on both the Protection of Marriage Act and the constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. They were also co-sponsors on six pro-equality bills, including the hate crimes bill, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia Equality, tells CL: “To have two congressional leaders that are so proactive on pro-equality legislation is very powerful, especially when those voices are coming out of the South. In particular, John Lewis’s record in the African-American civil rights movement makes him a vital ally. And having a newer voice like Hank Johnson on our side is a sign of things to come.”
On the other side of the spectrum are Republican Sens. Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson, whose answers are identical on every single piece of LGBT legislation. They are united against any pro-equality issue.
July 31st, 2009 at 7:35 pm
This is a great breakdown of the issues and the champions on both sides. It’ll be interesting to see how the stances of both sides mature and change over the coming months.