“Ohio is among the most unwelcoming states in the nation for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people,’’ said Lynne Bowman, executive director of Equality Ohio.

“It’s time to change that.’’ Ms. Bowman made her comments during a Columbus news conference to announce the introduction of legislation that would add Ohio to the growing list of states that make it illegal to discriminate based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Bowman cited a recent survey showing that two-thirds of Ohioans favor passage of the legislation and said that more than 90 percent of Fortune 500 companies have adopted anti-discrimination policies.

Twenty-one states, 11 of Ohio’s 13, four-year public colleges and 16 Ohio cities and villages have ordinances that protect their gay and lesbian residents.

Rather than continue to allow a patchwork of protections – or none at all — the legislators called for passage of statewide standards that would uniformly help all Ohio residents.

Are members of the LGBT community second-class citizens in your own state?

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