Councilman Refuses to Apologize for Anti-Gay Remarks
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Long Beach City Councilman Jerry Shultz says he will offer no apologies tonight as his colleagues consider censuring him for anti-gay remarks he made at a council meeting last month.
Fellow councilman Alan Lowenthal last week called for the censure, saying Shultz’s June 11 comments during a discussion of domestic partnerships “smacked of sexual cleansing.”
During Shultz’s 10-minute monologue before more than 300 people, he denounced homosexuality as morally unacceptable. The speech sparked opposing demonstrations by conservative supporters and members of the city’s large gay and lesbian community.
Shultz said a censure, which carries only symbolic punishment, would violate his 1st Amendment right to freedom of speech.
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