Arlington resident Keegan Dees, 27, walks away from the podium after speaking to Arlington City Council members on the antidiscrimination chapter of the city code during a meeting Dec. 9 at the Arlington City Council Chamber.
The Arlington City Council will hold its first reading of an ordinance to reinstate a modified version of the city’s antidiscrimination chapter during its next meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday. A resolution condemning discriminatory practices is also on the agenda for consideration.
The proposed chapter would rely on federal policy for protections, unlike the previous iteration, and would not allow city officials to investigate reports of discrimination, according to the ordinance.
The ordinance outlines that Arlington residents are protected under federal law, which prohibits discrimination in public accommodations and within labor organizations and employment agencies. The new chapter would not change any policy; it would act as a formal “commitment” to existing rights.
The ordinance states that the city “seeks to educate residents regarding their rights.”
Initially passed in 2021, the antidiscrimination chapter allowed the city to investigate claims of discrimination against protected classes such as race, religion, age, sexual orientation and gender identity.
In September 2025, the council suspended the chapter due to concerns that some protections would bar Arlington from receiving federal grants, which city officials said put $65 million at stake. Federal grants support programs such as housing assistance, firefighter grants, Via and Handitran.
The council voted 5-4 against a proposal in December 2025 to bring back the ordinance — which includes LGBTQ+ protections — following hours of tense, emotional testimony. Following the decision, Arlington Pride suspended its 2026 event amid public outcry.
DeeJay Johannessen, HELP Center for LGBT Health & Wellness CEO, said in a statement that the newly proposed ordinance compromises Arlington’s moral responsibility to its residents.
“The city will listen, nod, and do nothing. No investigation. No accountability. No enforcement,” Johannessen said in the statement. “That is not protection — that is abandonment.”
Some residents and officials were against having an antidiscrimination chapter in any capacity, claiming federal and state legislation already protects against discrimination, and a city ordinance is redundant.
Arlington’s situation comes amid sweeping threats from President Donald Trump’s administration to withhold funding from cities that maintain diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Trump signed an executive order to end all such programs after his inauguration, referring to them as “radical and wasteful.”
@pmalkomes