Members of the Massachusetts Democratic State Committee want to create two seats on the convention committee that may be held only by transgender members, plus two other seats specifically for bisexuals.
-- From "Some Democrats want to add panel seats based on sexual ID" by Jim O’Sullivan, State House News Service posted at Boston Glob 4/23/10
The change, for now the sole issue vote scheduled for the June convention, would add bisexual and transgender people to the list of requisite "add on" seats, giving both categories the same guaranteed number as military veterans and each state Senate district under the charter. The charter and bylaws also call for gay, lesbian, elderly, youth, and ethnic minority delegates.
Some Democratic legislators criticized the proposal to rewrite party rules as divisive.
"I think this is a good issue; I’m not sure this is the year for it," said Representative Ellen Story, an Amherst Democrat. "We need to be focusing on jobs and the economy."
The governor [Deval Patrick] has been an advocate of sexual identity policies, helping to defeat an effort to end gay marriage in Massachusetts and backing the transgender rights bill.
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