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CP Photo: Mars Johnson
Pride flag flying over a home in Pittsburgh’s Greenfield neighborhood
Pittsburgh has a myriad of city agencies, including the City Commission on Human Relations (CHR). Many people don’t know about this “small but mighty” institution, but it plays an important role in making Pittsburgh a city for everyone. The commission recently launched a new initiative to combat anti-LGBTQ discrimination with new research into people’s experiences with housing.
“We are the official civil rights agency of the City of Pittsburgh,” CHR Executive Director Rachel Shepherd told the Pittsburgh City Newspaper. And if you look at the research component of our mission, we also have a mission to do education and outreach and do research. ”
Under this mission, they are taking new initiatives to combat anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Bostock v. Clayton County that anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination in employment is illegal under federal law. Additionally, the City of Pittsburgh has included explicit protections for sexual orientation (since 1990) and gender identity and expression (since 2014). This includes discrimination in housing. This means that landlords, sellers, and other actors in the housing market cannot discriminate. These are important protections for LGBTQ people facing rising rent costs.
“It’s important to emphasize that even if something bad actually happens this election cycle and we end up removing additional protections at the federal level, Pittsburgh will keep them.” says Shepard. “We can continue to enforce these laws here in Pittsburgh, and we just don’t have the federal support we would otherwise have to continue these protections.”
However, banning discrimination will not eliminate it overnight. Although the CHR is aware of this, Shepherd said it sees very few applications based on sexual orientation or gender identity. They suspect that it means there is no problem in the city, which is why they started this investigation.
The committee wants to hear directly from the LGBTQ+ community to understand the challenges it faces, improve legal guidance, conduct educational campaigns, and combat prejudice. In particular, we would like to know about specific instances of discrimination and housing providers. They want to know what the discrimination is. And they want to know where queer people feel safe in the city and where they don’t.
By going to Pride and working with organizations like Hugh Lane Wellness, CHR hopes to cast a wide net and get as representative a sample as possible. We even extended the survey deadline twice to maximize responses. The investigation is still ongoing and they hope to visit gay-friendly bars and venues to spread the word about the investigation. The deadline for the investigation is officially today (October 31st), but it will likely be extended until November 31st.
These efforts took a long time. CHR launched an investigation shortly after 2020 under the agency’s first transgender director, Jam Hammond. Because they are a small agency and don’t have a large budget, they had difficulty finding vendors to help them conduct their research. After multiple attempts and an increase in the offered contract price, they were able to secure a vendor and begin work earlier this year. Shepherd said the process has been frustrating, but the agency is excited to talk to people on the ground and move forward. Once this investigation is complete, the agency will be better equipped to protect Pittsburgh’s LGBTQ+ community, Sheppard said.
Resource delays reflect a recurring challenge for CHR. Sheppard described the committee as “small but mighty,” but said the CHR is understaffed and stretched. The CHR has 15 members, appointed by the mayor and approved by the City Council, who are tasked with evaluating complaints and directing the agency’s focus. However, many seats are vacant, and some people’s terms are about to expire. This will make CHR staff’s jobs difficult, so Shepherd encouraged interested Pittsburghers to apply to serve on the commission.
“Right now, we have seven seats to fill, and we really want that, because there are so many cases that have to go through, and we need commissioners to do that,” Shepherd said. .
CHR is not the only local agency facing this problem. Shepherd said he tried to work with the city’s LGBTQIA+ committee, but was unable to meet formally due to quorum issues.
Still, Shepard is optimistic that the study will lead to change. She wants people to know that CHR recognizes that “there is a lot of intersectionality between protected classes in the city of Pittsburgh” and that there are more protections than people realize. I’m thinking of getting it. “We can work with you to accomplish something.”
