Residents Shawna Hillen and Erin George, center, hold hands during a march supporting LGBT rights Wednesday in downtown Wheeling.
WHEELING, W.Va. — Shawna Hillen and Erin George believe their experience in Wheeling illustrates why the city needs an ordinance establishing anti-discrimination protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents.
Hillen and George, a lesbian couple who were among about 100 people who marched through downtown Wheeling Wednesday in support of LGBT rights, said it took them time to find a landlord who would rent to them. Hillen said they are not in Wheeling to hurt anyone, but to simply live their lives — and both feel an anti-discrimination ordinance would help with this.
“I think an ordinance would make people realize that we are here,” Hillen said. “A lot of people don’t realize that there is a community.”
The march through downtown came as Wheeling City Council continues its consideration of a possible protective ordinance for LGBT residents…
