Responses of Johnnie Scott Rice to GLAA 2007 Questionnaire
for DC Council Candidates
| Yes/No | Substance | Record | Championship | Total |
| 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
PUBLIC SAFETY
1. As a member of the Public Safety and Judiciary Committee, will you support funding for mandatory gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) sensitivity and diversity training for all members of the Fire/EMS Department?
Yes. Especially in a city as diverse as the District, emergency workers need to put aside any personal prejudices in order to serve all of the public equally and fairly. In addition to supporting full funding, I will also work with GLAA to oversee training programs, both new and refresher, so that funds are used properly and training is implemented quickly and effectively.
2. Will you press the Metropolitan Police Department to combat the transphobia entrenched within our police force, expressed in the widespread assumption among police officers that every transgendered person is a prostitute until proven otherwise?
Yes. Our police department is one of the best city departments on gay and lesbian issues. In addition to supporting openly-gay officers through its Gay and Lesbian Liaison Unit, MPD also has a number of gay officers not directly associated with that unit within its ranks. I find it especially noteworthy that a report by Amnesty International stated that the MPD did very well in comparison against other police departments. That said, there is room for improvement. The respect that is generally shown toward gay lesbian and bisexual individuals is not shown toward those who are transgendered. The same Amnesty International report called the MPD to task for this. I will press Chief Lanier to expand sensitivity training for new and veteran members of MPD which includes transgendered issues in Police Academy training.
3. Will you support a budget for the Office of Police Complaints large enough to continue to avoid developing a backlog of cases?
Yes. Complaints against the government need to be taken seriously. They provide a feedback mechanism which helps to inspire the public trust. I will also press Chief Lanier to discipline officers that do not cooperate fully with the Office of Police Complaints.
AIDS AND PUBLIC HEALTH
4. Do you agree that the drive to make HIV testing routine among District residents should include funding for counseling and referrals to treatment facilities for those testing positive?
Yes. The discovery that one is suffering from a life-altering disease such as HIV/AIDS needs to be handled carefully and with compassion. We need to insure that patients understand about and how to manage their disease, not only to prolong the duration and quality of their life, but also to protect those ones around them that they love and who love them.
5. Are you committed to continuing and expanding the District’s condom distribution program?
Yes. Condoms are an inexpensive and effective way to prevent the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. We need to insure that the condoms we distribute wind up in the hands of those who need them most. To do this, we need to provide more vigorous oversight of HAA. I am committed to working with Councilmember Catania, my former boss, and the Chair of the Committee on Health, in this important effort. I especially want to see more condoms go to young women of color. We need to teach them to respect their bodies and that they should never have unprotected sex. In addition to reducing the spread of diseases such as HIV, we need to work to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies among this group.
6. The District is being forced by the federal government to switch from a unique identifier system to a names reporting system for people testing positive for HIV. Will you support legislation to strengthen our medical privacy laws, such as by creating a private right of action for those whose confidentiality is violated by District government employees or contractors?
Yes. I oppose names reporting and am sad that it is being forced upon the District. I believe that names reporting will discourage residents from getting tested. Having said that, I will work hard to insure patient confidentiality in an attempt to allay some patients’ fears. We recently saw cases where the names and social security numbers of veterans and government employees went missing. We all should find this troubling. Employees and contractors who allow such things to happen need to be prepared to make whole those who have been injured.
HUMAN RIGHTS
7. Will you support a budget for the Office of Human Rights (OHR) large enough to allow it to reduce to 270 days the average gap between the time that a discrimination complaint is filed and the time OHR issues a finding of probable cause?
Yes. Complaints against the government need to be taken seriously. They provide a feedback mechanism, which helps to inspire the public trust. I will also press the Chief of Fire and EMS to take Human Rights more seriously.
8. Will you block ceremonial resolutions and otherwise decline to honor individuals or organizations that promote any sort of bigotry?
Absolutely, yes. And I will work to convince my colleagues to do so as well. Should such a resolution pass, I would refuse to be in the Chamber when it was presented.
9. Are you committed to publicizing and enforcing the provisions of the D.C. Human Rights Act forbidding discrimination on the basis of gender identity or expression?
Yes. I am 100% committed to publicizing and enforcing all of the provisions of the DC Human Rights Act forbidding discrimination of any kind.
10. Do you agree that the Director of the Office of Human Rights should be required to have professional training and experience in civil rights law enforcement?
Yes. I will urge the Mayor to honor his previous promise to involve GLAA and other interested community groups in the selection process should there come a time when a new Director is sought.
MARRIAGE AND FAMILY
11. Do you support legal recognition of marriages between partners of the same sex?
Yes, as domestic partnerships or civil unions. Since same sex marriage is not legal at this point in the District, I assume the recognition you speak to refers to unions joined in other states. If joined in another state, I would support recognizing that union. I would also actively oppose efforts by congresspersons such as Virginia Rep. Jo Ann Davis who introduced H.R. 72 “To define marriage for all legal purposes in the District of Columbia to consist of the union of one man and one woman.” I firmly believe that only the Mayor and the Council of the District of Columbia should decide how marriage should be defined within our borders. Intrusion by someone who does not represent the citizens of the District to simply appease his or her constituents back home does not sit well with me on this or on any issue.
12. Will you support legislation in the District to continue expanding the existing domestic partnership program to include all relevant rights and responsibilities of marriage in D.C. law?
Yes. I will enthusiastically support any such legislation and would be proud to introduce or co-introduce it on behalf of GLAA. I would add that expanding domestic partnerships in such a manner is only calling same-sex marriage by a different name. I recognize GLAA is making a tactical move by expanding domestic partnership rights as opposed to pursuing same-sex marriage.
13. Will you support the legislative and/or regulatory changes necessary to ensure that the District recognizes civil unions, domestic partnerships and similar legal relationships established in other jurisdictions?
Yes. People should not lose basic civil rights simply because they move. Furthermore, DC can attract more residents by recognizing the civil unions, domestic partnerships and same-sex marriages established in other states and countries.
14. Will you oppose legislation giving special benefits to PEPCO until it implements an equitable domestic partner benefit program?
Had PEPCO not recently announced, in the time since this questionnaire was written, that it was implementing such a program, I would have opposed legislation giving them special benefits.
15. Do you agree that private contractors doing business with the District should be required to provide domestic partner programs?
Yes. Domestic partnership privileges offered by employers cost no more than privileges offered to married partners.
PUBLIC EDUCATION AND YOUTH
16. Do you oppose both federal and local voucher programs that fund students in religious schools that are beyond the protections of the D.C. Human Rights Act?
Yes. While I recognize the intent of vouchers (to help students escape a poorly managed education system that is not delivering), I also believe that we need to be able to ensure that our tax dollars are being spent properly through effective oversight. Despite receiving government funding, private school students who receive vouchers are not required to take the DC CAS nor are their schools held accountable under No Child Left Behind. Furthermore, if it is not legal to teach children about religion in our public schools using tax dollars then it shouldn’t be legal to teach our children religion in private schools using tax dollars.
17. As a member of the Committee of the Whole which now has jurisdiction over the public school system, will you oppose the use of either federal or District taxpayer funds to promote “abstinence only until marriage” sex education that undermines safer-sex programs by discouraging the use of condoms and that effectively tells gay and lesbian students that they must remain celibate forever because they may not legally marry?
Yes. I support the D.C. Board of Education rules that mandate a comprehensive, age-appropriate sexual education program for all students including abstinence, anatomy, contraception, homosexuality, and discussion of the process of making personal decisions in matters of parenting and sexuality.
CONSUMERS AND BUSINESSES
18. As a member of the Public Works and Environment Committee which has jurisdiction over ABC licenses, will you support the relocation of the many gay bars and businesses that were displaced by the new ballpark, even if local NIMBYs and homophobes oppose them?
Yes. I do not believe that people should be allowed to oppose the opening of any business based on the race or sexual orientation of its clientele. I also believe that if neighborhoods oppose businesses nearby then they need to seek to have their neighborhood rezoned.
19. Will you support legislation to curb the abuses of NIMBYs who are now allowed to file an endless series of baseless complaints to harass or extort bars and restaurants?
Yes. As an ANC Commissioner I was sensitive to the needs of both residents and small business owners. Both groups provide much-needed revenue and jobs for the city. Furthermore, if not for the wide range of dining and entertainment venues in neighborhoods such as Dupont Circle, Adams Morgan and Capitol Hill, fewer residents would be clamoring to live there. Reasonable attempts to reduce noise, violence and litter should remain welcome. However, forcing one business to a standard that its neighbors do not have to live up to is unreasonable and should not be tolerated.
Please provide the URL for your campaign website, if you have one. We will include it on our candidate links page.
Website URL: http://www.johnniescottrice.com
Your record is part of your rating. Please list any actions that you have taken that may help illustrate your record on behalf of gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgenders.
