SWAN Hill Rural City Council has no plan to develop an inclusion plan for the region’s gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) community, even though some LGBTIQ residents report facing open discrimination in the area.
The world has been left reeling by this week’s mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, which left 49 people dead and 53 wounded in an apparent homophobic attack.
Swan Hill’s neighbouring councils have shown support for their local LGBTIQ communities — including the Buloke Shire which passed a 2014 motion advocating the Federal Government to allow same-sex couples to marry, and Mildura Rural City Council, which earlier this year adopted an LGBTIQ inclusion plan.
The Mildura council last month flew the rainbow flag from its chambers in a show of solidarity with the region’s gay community.
But Swan Hill Mayor Les McPhee said there was no plan to develop a similar plan for of the LGBTIQ community in Swan Hill.
For more on this story pick up a copy of Fridays Guardian (June 17, 2016)
