Remove gender bias from the City of Ocala's Charter
Remove gender bias from the City of Ocala's Charter
Why this petition matters
A group of Ocala citizens has issued the following letter to Ocala City Council:
In 1996, the State of Florida erased gender-specific language from our statutes. The initiative started with the Florida Supreme Court's Gender Bias Study Commission that issued its first report in 1990, urging that "gender bias in legal language cannot be ignored or trivialized."
Moving away from using only masculine pronouns, or the formal requirements of women being addressed as males may have felt to some as merely a symbolic move. However, symbols matter in the fight for women's equality.
We ask that you revise the City's charter, following the example of the State of Florida and our Florida Supreme Court, to replace “he” with “he or she” to be more inclusive and reflect our City's view on equality of the sexes.
Please join us in adding your signature to our petition.
Decision Makers
- Ocala City Council