SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio City Council is still more than a week away from voting on a proposed non-discrimination ordinance that has stirred emotions on both sides of the issue.
On Saturday, some local religious groups spent the afternoon block-walking and collecting signatures in an effort to unseat Councilman Diego Bernal, who drafted the ordinance.
"We are out here trying to get signatures to recall Diego Bernal because he has violated his oath of office," said Frank Montez, with the Texas Leadership Coalition. "This new ordinance will violate our first amendment right, freedom of religion."
Montez said their issue with the ordinance is that it would add gender identity and sexual orientation to the city's current ordinance.
"If you can't discriminate against a homosexual, then prohibiting them to going into the women's restroom, them being male cross-dressers or male persons or whatever," said Montez.
Also on Saturday, dozens of District 1 residents lined up along St. Mary's, near Highway 281 to show support for Councilman Diego Bernal and the ordinance.
District 1 resident Ernest Gonzales said the non-discrimination ordinance has nothing to do with taking away rights from religious groups or about allowing the opposite sex in public bathrooms. He said it's about equality.
"We're here to stand with Diego Bernal, in support of the non-discrimination ordinance," said Gonzales. "All of us here believe that every single person in San Antonio, regardless of who they are, what they look, anything like that, should be treated exactly the same if they are doing business with the city."
"I believe that what he is trying to do with this ordinance is just that we don't discriminate against anybody" said Gloria Camarillo-Vasquez, District 1 resident.
Councilman Bernal said the city is working directly with religious leaders to address concerns over the non-discrimination ordinance. That ordinance is up for a vote on September 5th.