A local lesbian who said she was denied access to a Rogers Park shelter because of her sexual orientation recently agreed to settle the dispute after the shelter promised to train its employees and reaffirm its opposition to discrimination against LGBT people.
Michelle Wang, 27, claimed that Rogers Park’s New Life Shelter, owned by Good News Partners, discriminated against her on the basis of sexual orientation when she was denied shelter last year. The American Civil Liberties Union had filed a discrimination complaint with Chicago’s Commission on Human Relations and the Illinois Department of Human Rights this past April.
On July 11, Good News Partners Founder/President Rev. Bud Ogle, along with Wang’s attorneys, announced the settlement. The shelter agreed to commit to showing it is opposed to discrimination against LGBT people by initiating comprehensive training for its employees, entitled ‘LGBT 101.’ In addition, the organization agreed to train all new employees and provide annual refresher training for the next three years. As part of the agreement, Wang will be allowed to review the training agenda and offer suggestions.
After breaking up with her girlfriend, Wang went back and forth between homes, but found herself literally out in the cold on Nov. 1, 2006. She alleged that when she honestly explained her situation and revealed the fact that she was a lesbian to a New Life Shelter employee over the phone, it was very clear that the shelter was going to turn her away based on her sexual orientation.
New Life shelter uses city dollars. In the contracts the city has with shelters, it requires that those shelters do not discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation.