Seattle proposes expanding civil rights to include polyamory and non-binary identities

The Seattle City Council’s Housing, Arts and Civil Rights Committee has voted unanimously to advance a proposal that would expand the city’s civil rights code. The legislation aims to protect individuals from discrimination based on family and relationship structures.

The proposal seeks to recognize consensual relationships involving multiple partners as an element of attitudes, preferences, and practices pertaining to sexual orientation. It also includes provisions to recognize genders outside the gender binary and to recognize pansexuality and asexuality as orientations.

Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck, the bill’s sponsor, stated that the ordinance is intended to prohibit discrimination as fully as possible, ensuring that all family types receive equal protection under the law.