Abusing the Recall Right

Recall attempts are nothing new in Orange County, but the use--or, more aptly, the misuse--of the effort under way in Santa Ana is one that residents should strongly reject.

Not that we oppose recall actions. They enable voters to remove officials whose performance is so substandard that residents cannot be expected to wait until the next regular election to replace them. But this recall effort is less a use than abuse of the process.

The three council members targeted for recall are being singled out, not because of some gross lapse of judgment or unreasonable action, but because they did the only proper thing they could do in refusing to revoke a permit issued by Santa Ana for a Gay Pride Festival at Centennial Regional Park on Sept. 9 and 10.

The City Council majority acted under the sound advice of the city attorney, who warned them that to revoke the permit would constitute an unconstitutional act of discrimination against the festival sponsors. Other groups have routinely been given permission to use the park. So the council could not legally tell the organizers to go somewhere else. The city cannot pick and choose among applicants to use public facilities based on personal feelings about organizations that apply for permits.

The City Council--except for Councilman John Acosta--understood that and had the political courage to do what was legal and fair, in defiance of the unreasonable pressure unleashed by the Rev. Louis P. Sheldon and his Anaheim-based Coalition on Traditional Values.

The out-of-town religious group with an obvious and unreasonable homophobic bent has been opposing the Gay Pride Festival. Last Friday Sheldon issued an ultimatum to the Santa Ana City Council, demanding that it sign by noon on Monday a “pro-family” resolution and promise to pass an emergency ban of the festival. All but Acosta refused to sign any such document. So a recall has been launched against Mayor Daniel H. Young and council members Daniel E. Griset and Patricia A. McGuigan.

The community should reject the effort and refuse to sign petitions to qualify it for the ballot. The issue is not homosexuality. It is equity. And proper procedure. And compliance and respect for constitutional rights. The City Council majority acted properly. It is Sheldon and his coalition who deserve rebuke.