The Arlington City Council voted 5-4 Tuesday night to suspend protections for its LGBTQ residents that are enshrined in the city’s anti-discrimination ordinance.
The council meeting started at 6:30 p.m., with the vote on the measure occurring about 8:30 p.m. The vote capped hours of emotional testimony in a packed council chamber that was standing room only, which forced others to an overflow area that also had no available seats.
Deputy Mayor Pro-Tempore Raul Gonzalez and council members Mauricio Galante, Rebecca Boxall, Long Pham and Bowie Hogg voted against reinstatement.
Arlington Mayor Jim Ross sided with council members Mayor Pro Tempore Dr. Barbara Odom-Wesley, Nikkie Hunter and Andrew Piel, all of whom voted in support of the protections.
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Over 60 speakers — including supporters and opponents — addressed the council. The speakers were each limited to one minute, though there was some pushback as some speakers tried to exceed the one-minute limit.
Attendees hold Pride flags during a City Council meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, in Arlington. There were 34 attendees signed up to speak in support of the anti-discrimination ordinance and 11 against.
Christine Vo / Staff Photographer
The audience was told that 78 non-speakers had expressed support for reinstatement while six opposed it.
The speakers in support of reinstatement emphasized that Arlington residents are stronger together and the city will only be a community if everyone is accepted.
“This is our lives on the line, and I don’t want to have to leave my home and everything I love,” Arlington resident Keegan Dees said.
“If we deny someone protection based on who they love and identify as, we are harming them,” Arlington resident Philip Lupo told the council.
The opposition speakers suggested changing the verbiage of the ordinance or removing the ordinance altogether in order to comply with federal and state laws.
“I hear the pain and the passion in the proponents of this reinstatement,” one of the speakers said. “But I believe that none of this ordinance would change the federal programs. Both sides can win in this one.”
Arlington mayor Jim Ross reassures residents after the anti-discrimination ordinance failed to be re-instated during a City Council meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, in Arlington. The vote failed 5-4.
Christine Vo / Staff Photographer
Mayor Ross gave each council member a moment to speak before the formal vote took place.
“No matter how this vote goes, there is no state, federal or municipal law that will change who we are and how we treat each other,” Galante said.
“We care, and we want the best for the city,” Hunter said.
Some council members still urged unity despite the divide on the controversial issue.
“Regardless of how the vote turns out tonight, we aren’t going to discriminate against anyone, because discrimination is wrong,” Pham said. “I love you guys. We’re better together.”
The vote comes after months of debate, two vote delays and pleas from the region’s LGBTQ community and civil rights advocates to preserve the protections. Arlington is one of the first U.S. cities to repeal its protections for LGBTQ residents.
The vote to remove “sexual orientation” and “gender identity and expression” from the anti-discrimination ordinance is in place, effective immediately and until further notice. This means the city would no longer handle complaints from LGBTQ residents who say they faced discrimination in housing, employment or other public accommodations.
Arlington resident Kristin Rua, 49, comforts her daughter Elizabeth Rua, 15, after speaking during a City Council meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025, in Arlington. Rua said they are scared they will no longer be safe at school as a member of the LGBTQ+ community.
Christine Vo / Staff Photographer
City officials have said Arlington risked losing $65 million in federal funding if it did not amend the ordinance, citing President Donald Trump’s pledge to withhold federal funding from cities with diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, programs.
Community leaders disputed the city’s characterization of Trump’s order at prior council meetings, arguing that an anti-discrimination ordinance is not the same as DEI programs.
More than 20 states and nearly 400 cities across the country have policies banning discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, according to the Movement Advancement Project, a nonprofit research organization that tracks legislation related to LGBTQ issues.
In Texas, roughly 14% of LGBTQ residents live in a city with such protections, the nonprofit says. Dallas, Fort Worth and Plano include LGBTQ residents in their anti-discrimination ordinances. Arlington added the protection in 2021.
“This has not been easy. We’ve had very heated discussions in every way you could possibly think of with leaders on both sides of the fence,” Ross said. “Despite the vote tonight, Arlington remains committed to fostering an inclusive community for all residents and ensuring no one individual faces discrimination.”