Atlanta mayor threatens to fine country club for not recognizing gay partn

[Khephra]

Atlanta mayor threatens to fine country club for not recognizing gay partners

ATLANTA The battle over gay unions is hitting the manicured greens of a Georgia country club.

The mayor of Atlanta is threatening to fine the club because officials there refuse to extend benefits -- like golfing privileges -- to the partners of gay club members.

The mayor says the club is violating an Atlanta law that requires businesses to recognize domestic partners. Such a violation could bring the club a fine of up to 90-thousand dollars.

http://www.10tv.com/Global/story.asp?S=2737553

[xultar]

1. GET'EM GURLLL FRIEND!!! Go Mayor Franklin!!!! YEAH HOO! n/t

[TheDonkey]

2. That's good news, guessing this mayor is a (D)

that reminds me why I love this party. Standing up for those people that need someone.

[TexasSissy]

3. I thought private clubs (of any sort) were allowed to

set their own membership rules, including discrimination, if they wanted? It's only public groups that have to abide by the non-discriminatory laws. For example, there are still country clubs in America who don't allow Jews as members, or blacks, or women, etc.

[InvisibleBallots]

4. Will they be fined for discriminating against those who can't afford their

fees?

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

12. Hey...

[toopers]

5. I imagine the fine will not hold up in court.

Even if it does, the state will probably pass legislation overruling it. If they don't do that, then the Club will probably move to be de-annexed out of the city limits of Atlanta.

[daa]

6. If it did stand up in court they would just

stop benefits for everyone. Only a small part of the club is in Atlanta and they have asked to be annexed by the county where the majority of the club including the golf course is located.

[toopers]

7. Of course, if the club is annexed or de-annexed,

it would be interesting to see what would happen at the county level. Dekalb County is heavily Democrat so you may see legislation passed that mirrors City of Atlanta.

[skippythwndrdog]

8. Bizarre.

Shouldn't a private club be able to do as they wish? I am a Brother of the Knights of Columbus, should we be fined because we are men-only? What about the Junior League? Should they be fined for not allowing men as members? Why should a private club be fined for not allowing privileges to unmarried partners of members?

[Behind the Aegis]

9. Is it private?

I didn't read that it was a private club. Is there another article that says it is a private club? Membership-only doesn't make it private.

[skippythwndrdog]

10. Sure sounds like one.

I've never heard of a country club that wasn't a private club.

[Behind the Aegis]

13. There are several

I know that there a few all over the place. I used to live in GA and while I was there (years ago) there was a country club that was private, in that you had to pay dues. Like I said, having a membership code doesn't exclude having to follow the rules. There is a process they have to go through (always some process, ain't it) to make it a real private club. It sounds odd, but that was how it used to be. Some of this will also depend if they get any funds from the city. Private means they are completely self-sustaining.

[toopers]

17. It is a private club in that . . .

it has non-profit status. It does not get any funds from the city. However, the city does provide an alcohol license, and to obtain a City of Atlanta license you must follow certain criteria, one being a non-discrimination clause. However, part of the CC is outside the City of Atlanta. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

[sandnsea]

16. If you were white men only

You would be in trouble. Because KC is religious, there are some exemptions. The golf club extends benefits to partners, so it has to extend those benefits equally to all partners. It couldn't refuse to extend benefits to mixed race marriages, for example. I think groups like the Junior League are somewhat dependent on access for business purposes, where not being allowed creates a disadvantge for people based on sex, race or religion. No man is disadvantaged because he can't join the Junior League.

[420inTN]

11. It's interesting that the story is coming out of OH, and not GA. n/t

[RT Atlanta]

14. A little more info...

From what I understand, the City of ATL has enacted a new and extremely broadly written civil rights bill into the city code. The new provisions effectively give the City carte blanche for taking action in any form of discrimination if that discrimination happens within the city limits. Druid Hills CC is located within the city limits and is being targeted accordingly. Now I dont know the specifics of why the City decided to target this CC rather than some others, but Druid Hills has been previously regarded as one of the more "open" cc's locally (it's all relative of course). That's a little bit more from the street.

[jdj]

15. kind of funny it's named after pagans

and practices old-fashioned christian pseudo morality.