No protest this time around

By Charles Sercombe
For the first time ever, Hamtramck city officials recognized June as “Hamtramck Pride Month.”
Last week, the city council unanimously – and without comment — approved a proclamation recognizing the designation.
Hamtramck’s relationship with the gay and LGBTQ+ community hasn’t always been so smooth.
Back in 2008 – 13 years ago — the city council approved an ordinance regarding human rights – specifically, guaranteeing the civil rights of the gay and LGBTQ+ community.
There was an immediate backlash organized by outside conservative groups the Thomas More Legal Center and the American Family Association of Michigan.
The groups teamed up with conservative members of the local Catholic and Muslim faiths to hold an election to overturn the ordinance.
Included in that effort against the ordinance is current mayoral candidate Kamal Asm Rahman, who at that time had resurrected the Hamtramck branch of the NAACP.
Rahman, a Bangladeshi-American who works for the City of Detroit, said this about the ordinance in 2008:
“The terms sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. Those are the words we are opposing because, sexual orientation, the meaning is limitless. Sexual orientation does not limit … orientation toward whom? It could be an animal; it could be children. Not just man-to-man, but man-to-animal…I know it sounds crude, but this is the fact…
“Get rid of it [Human Rights Ordinance] altogether. Get rid of the discussion. … This law will discriminate against people who are non-homosexual. Heterosexual people will be discriminated against.”
Ultimately, the anti-gay forces were successful in getting voters to repeal the ordinance.
The Review asked Kamal if he still stood by the comments he made in 2008, and he said that after those comments were published, he had clarified what he meant.
Kamal was asked what those clarifications were, and he said: “I’ll have a statement from the campaign later.”
But he did say, initially: “That was a bad comment to make.”
He further said:
“I’m for everybody’s rights period – if you’re gay, Muslim it doesn’t matter. Hamtramck celebrates everybody.”
With 2008 far in the rearview mirror, last week’s city council meeting unanimously supported a proclamation recognizing June as “Hamtramck Pride Month.”
The proposal came from the city’s newly formed Arts and Culture Commission. In a draft of a press release from the commission, it said:
“For the first time in its history, the City of Hamtramck shall officially commemorate Hamtramck Pride for the month of June 2021, not only in this inaugural year but henceforth each June in future years in conjunction with global Pride Month celebrations.
“In recognition of the experiences of LGBTQ+ residents, visitors, and queer communities across the globe, the city will fly the 11-color Progress Pride flag at Zussman Park throughout the month of June with a celebratory commemoration. …”
The date of the commemoration has not yet been announced.
Former City Councilmember Scott Klein, who back in 2008 was behind the human rights ordinance, said the proclamation was “a long-overdue acknowledgement of their (LGBTQ+) contributions.”
“Plans are already underway to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community’s important contributions to Hamtramck with a first-ever Gay Pride Festival next year.”
The city’s proclamation last week also recognized June as Black Lives Matter Month, adding the recognition of the Juneteenth celebration, as well as the recognition of Flag Day on June 14.
Posted June 4, 2021