Gay rights demonstrators arrested on Strip

By Jackie Valley

Tuesday, July 20, 2010 | 7:55 p.m.

About 20 people demonstrated Tuesday near the intersection of the Strip and Tropicana Avenue, calling on Sen. Harry Reid to support a bill banning workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Metro Police spokesman Bill Cassell said officials arrested eight people during the demonstration at 1:30 p.m., charging them with blocking traffic and obstructing a police officer after they failed to follow a lawful order to disperse.

Cassell said the arrests were peaceful, and the eight people were transported to the Clark County Detention Center for booking.

GetEQUAL, the group holding the demonstration, is a new lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender direct action group whose mission is to empower the LGBT community and its allies to take action and demand full legal and social equality, organizers said.

Heather Cronk, managing director of GetEQUAL, said the group draped two banners near the New York-New York casino that read “Reid: Pass ENDA Now” and “Reid: No One Can Do More?”

Cronk said the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would enact federal workplace protections for the LGBT community, has been bouncing around Congress since 1974.

Now, she said, it looks like the bill has enough votes in the House, but it is still short in the Senate — a place Reid’s vote can make a difference.

Cronk said GetEQUAL wanted to call Reid’s attention to the issue, acknowledging that the senator faces a tough re-election campaign with many important issues at stake in Nevada.

“We feel workplace protection for LGBT people needs to be at the top of that list as well,” she said.

GetEQUAL, a national organization, partnered with local LGBT activists and people from neighboring Arizona and California for Tuesday’s demonstration, Cronk said.

“While Nevada has good legislation, Arizona is still lacking and half the states across the country are as well,” she said.