As word spreads about the appointment of anti-gay activist Terry Kemple to Hillsborough County's Human Relations Board, more residents are getting angryâ┚¬â€Âand one board member has resigned.
Patrick DeMarco announced his resignation March 1 in a letter sent to the entire Human Relations Boardâ┚¬â€Âa board created to protect the rights of all area citizens.
“The reason for my resignation is that I cannot, in good conscience, participate on the same Board which now includes another member who has dedicated himself to public campaigns of bigotry and discrimination against gay and lesbian citizens of this community,â┚¬Â DeMarco wrote in his letter addressed to Board Director, Camille Blake.
Kemple has opposed equal protection laws for LGBT citizens several times in his career. For years he tried to block anti-bullying and non-discrimination protections in local schools and the creation of Gay-Straight Alliances in Hillsborough Schools. He also led a failed boycott of Pepsico for the beverage maker's domestic partnership policies for gay and lesbian employees.
Most recently, while running for the Hillsborough County School Board, Kemple required donors to check a box declaring that they do not support LGBT initiatives.
â┚¬Å”I can accept the fact that our Board is composed of a wide variety of people who come from different backgrounds and who hold varying points of view,â┚¬Â DeMarco wrote. â┚¬Å”However, it is my belief that it is unacceptable and unconscionable to allow someone who has openly advocated and worked for laws and policies that promote prejudice against a significant portion of our population.”
According to Equality Florida, more than 800 Hillsborough residents have contacted the County Commission to complain about Kemple's appointment. Nadine Smith, Equality Florida's executive director, said that having someone like Kemple in a role that is supposed to protect rights doesn't make sense.
“People are speaking up because they are outraged by the appointment of someone who opposes equality, the very thing this board is supposed to represent,” Smith said.
So far, there's no indication that the county will undo its appointment of Kemple.
Kemple was appointed in December and had the approval of commissioners Victor Crist, Ken Hagan, Al Higginbotham, Sandy Murman and Mark Sharpe. Commissioners Les Miller and Kevin Beckner voted against the appointment.
In the closing remarks of his resignation letter, DeMarco asked, â┚¬Å”How can we retain the respect and support of our community if we accept as a member someone whose philosophy is directly opposed to these values of basic human equality?”
