The recent incident of targeted homophobic vandalism in Fort Wright has citizens talking about change.
On Sept. 18, Hannah Wintorn and Elise Sebastian’s Fort Wright home was vandalized. Adjacent to their pride flag and their daughter’s bedroom window, someone spray-painted the words “Hell is real” on the side of their home.
Wintorn and Sebastian are a lesbian couple who, up to this point, said they have experienced mostly acceptance and respect from the Fort Wright community. They moved to the area four years ago and now raise their daughter there.
Fort Wright City Council addressed the incident at its Oct. 4 meeting. Members of Fort Wright staff and city council expressed how disturbed they were by this incident and extended condolences to the Sebastian family.
Mayor Dave Hatter read a statement from the city calling this event “a despicable and deplorable act of intimidation and fear.”
At the same meeting, the council passed a resolution denouncing the criminal act and calling for unity in the city.
The resolution “condemn[s] hateful behavior and speech and encourag[es] everyone to treat each other with kindness, dignity, and respect.”
But is it enough?
Wintorn and Sebastian say it’s not.
“The resolution is very kind and thoughtful, but it misses the mark,” Sebastian told LINK nky.
The couple emphasizes that local police have been incredibly responsive and that their neighbors have supported them. They say they love their community and want to make it a place where people like them don’t have to live in fear. After posting about the incident on Facebook, a local friend who identifies as LGBTQ+ said that it’s events like this that make them scared to display their own pride flag.
Sebastian addressed the council on Oct. 4 to describe what her family had been through in her own words. Sebastian and some neighbors said that a situation like this shows that Fort Wright is in desperate need of a “fairness ordinance.”
A fairness ordinance would offer protections against housing, employment and public accommodation discrimination to LGBTQ+ people. Because neither the Kentucky state constitution nor the Civil Rights Act offers LGBTQ+ people those protections, local communities pass these ordinances independently.
Started by the Kentucky Fairness Campaign, the first fairness ordinance was passed in 1999 in Louisville, and since then, versions of this ordinance have been passed in more than 20 local municipalities throughout Kentucky.
Chris Hartman, executive director of the Fairness Campaign, told LINK nky that while a fairness ordinance would not have any bearing on the vandalism of the Fort Wright couple’s house, it would still benefit the city.
“A fairness ordinance sends a powerful message that a community will not tolerate hate towards its LGBTQ+ citizens,” Hartman said.
According to Fort Wright police and local government officials, the incident at Wintorn and Sebastian’s home was rare and unprecedented.
“I am happy to say as far as I know, with all the years I’ve been here, I’m not aware of anything like this ever happening before,” Hatter said.
To that, Hartman said, ”How would they know? With no current procedure for formally reporting LGBTQ+ discrimination, those incidents fall through the cracks. The reality is that LGBTQ+ people face discrimination everywhere, even in the most inclusive and accepting cities.”
Hartman pointed to the several other Northern Kentucky cities that have passed their own versions of the ordinance. These include Elsmere, Crescent Springs, Highland Heights, Cold Springs, and Fort Thomas, among others. Fort Mitchell, a close neighbor of Fort Wright, passed their fairness ordinance in 2021.
Mayor Jude Hehman of Fort Mitchell is proud of his city’s fairness ordinance.
“With the passage of our fairness ordinance, we recognized that every citizen brings a unique perspective,” Hehman said. “It is our duty as a city to ensure that every individual, regardless of their background, has equal opportunities and the chance to thrive.”
Fort Mitchell Council Member Greg Pohlgeers also told LINK nky that he favored this ordinance.
“Not all of these rights, specifically sexual orientation, are protected by National or State Constitutions,” Pohlgeers said. “This ordinance alleviated those shortcomings. Simply put, it provides a golden rule—treat everyone the way you want to be treated.”
Other Fort Wright community members showed up to voice their support for creating a fairness ordinance. City attorney Timothy Theissen is researching how a fairness ordinance could apply to the city. Hatter said they are still looking into it.