Advocacy group gives Sioux Falls bad rating in LGBT equality

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — An LGBT advocacy group has rated Sioux Falls well below the national average in equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

The Human Rights Campaign's Municipal Equality Index gave the city 28 out of 100 points in 2015, The Argus Leader reported (http://argusne.ws/1PinUgH). The national average is 56.

The group grades hundreds of U.S. cities each year based on the inclusivity of local laws, policies and government services for LGBT people. Cities get credit for having an active human rights commission and nondiscrimination policies in writing. Law enforcement and mayoral outreach for LGBT residents also earns points.

The blemishes on Sioux Falls' report include no local nondiscrimination laws for private employment, housing and public accommodations; no protections for transgender city employees; and no liaisons between city departments and the LGBT community.

City Councilor Michelle Erpenbach said she hopes to talk with her colleagues this year about bolstering LGBT protections in Sioux Falls.

"It's kind of embarrassing to have that kind of a ranking," she said.

Erpenbach said she has talked with Sioux Falls' Center of Equality on what the City Council should do. Center For Equality President Thomas Christiansen said adding private sector employee protections would have the biggest impact on the city's Human Rights Campaign rating.

"Being here in South Dakota, it's hard to change those things," he said. "But we're trying to get it — even for private businesses. That's something that we would like to see."

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The Gayly - 1/10/2016 @ 11:34 a.m. CST