This article first appeared on the Buckeye Flame.

Ohio Senate Minority Leader and out lesbian Sen. Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood) has re-introduced the Ohio Fairness Act for the 12th time, despite waning support among Republican lawmakers.

The Fairness Act – which would extend equal civil rights protections to LGBTQ+ Ohioans – was formerly a bipartisan bill. 

However, Antonio said the Trump administration’s focus on anti-transgender policy and rhetoric has helped set an increasingly anti-LGBTQ+ precedent at the Ohio Statehouse.

“We should already have equal rights in the state of Ohio, so it’s important to introduce legislation that calls for that,” Antonio said. “People from the LGBTQ+ community should already receive equal treatment under the law – and that means in employment, in housing and when traversing the public sphere.”

“I think it’s a sad state of affairs,” Leader Antonio told The Buckeye Flame. “It is crazy to think that including everyone is somehow a bad thing.”

Antonio first introduced a less-comprehensive version of the Fairness Act in 2015, while serving as a member of the Ohio House of Representatives.

Since then, state lawmakers have failed to advance a version of the bill 11 times.

In 2021, former state Republican Rep. Brent Hillyer co-sponsored the bill, which also drew public support from Ohio Business Competes – “a nonpartisan coalition of businesses committed to achieving nondiscrimination policies at the state level.”

However, following a growing national trend of anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment, the bill now has fewer cosponsors than ever before.

Some Republicans have suggested the bill could trigger a spike in LGBTQ+ discrimination lawsuits. However, other states that have granted LGBTQ+ people equal civil rights have not reported a significant increase in lawsuits.

Antonio also said the bill is not designed to be punitive, but instead includes a mediation clause designed to help Ohio businesses and organizations navigate compliance.

“Business owners and organizations understand that it’s the right thing to do, but it also continues to be a driving force for welcoming people,” Antonio said, noting the bill could also serve as an economic catalyst for the state.

“We have all kinds of workforce issues right now. We have way more jobs than we have people to fill them,” she said. “It makes no sense that you would limit your pool of candidates, or that you wouldn’t want to encourage the best in the brightest across the spectrum to come to Ohio to live, work and put down roots.”

“I think it’s very shortsighted,” Antonio added. “It should not be a Democrat or a Republican issue. It should be an issue of fairness and pragmatism.”

“I think it’s really important that we push back, Antonio said. “There is absolutely nothing wrong with talking about diversity. There is nothing wrong with talking about equality or equity. These are not bad things. That’s ridiculous.”

To express support for the Fairness Act, Ohioans can contact their representatives or members of the Senate Government Oversight and Reform Committee. However, Antonio also encouraged Ohioans to get involved in the push for LGBTQ+ civil rights at the local level.

“It’s important for people to talk to their local officials,” she said. “Many cities now have these ordinances on the books, and having local protections helps continue the conversation.”

“We have a democratic form of government which means “by the people,” and yet there are entities at every level saying that they get to determine who has rights and who does not,” Antonio added. “I think it’s really important for us to have a conversation in the public sphere about the fact that there are some people who are marginalized based on their identity or their orientation and are being left out of having access to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

While the Fairness Act is not expected to advance beyond committee hearings this congressional session, Antonio said the fight for LGBTQ+ civil rights at the Ohio Statehouse is far from finished.

“We are not less-than anyone else,” she said. “I have always said, there is absolutely no closet big enough to put us all back inside – and we’re not going anywhere, anyway.” 

• To access The Buckeye Flame’s full 2025-2026 Guide to LGBTQ+ Legislation, click here.
• If you are a young LGBTQ+ person in crisis, please contact the Trevor Project: 866-4-U-Trevor.
• If you are an transgender adult in need of immediate help, contact the National Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860

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H.L. Comeriato is the senior staff writer for The Buckeye Flame. A queer and non-binary writer and reporter from Akron, Ohio, they received the 2024 Sarah Pettit Memorial Award for the LGBTQ Journalist of the Year from the NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists. They previously covered public health for The Devil Strip via Report for America. Their work has been recognized by multiple journalism organizations, including first place honors from both the Society of Professional Journalists and the Associated Press Media Editors Association for a story they co-created on the relationship between redlining and asthma rates in children.