Senators from the Gator Party and the Orange and Blue Party were able to put party differences aside and pass a resolution unanimously opposing Gainesville Charter Amendment 1, which would legalize discrimination based on gender identity.
Senators and students alike took a stand against the amendment.
"If passed it would make it legal to fire [people] from their job, kick them out of their house or refuse them service in a restaurant because they are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered," said Garrett Garner, UF campus coordinator for Equality is Gainesville's Business.
Charter Amendment 1 was added to March's election ballot after a citizen petition, which requires the signatures of 10 percent of registered voters, was submitted.
If passed, the amendment would also affect veterans and local businesses.
"The city of Gainesville can't extend equal rights protection in the future," he said.
Garner spoke during the resolution's presentation alongside its sponsors from both parties.
A resolution is an official stance the Senate takes on an issue.
"We will speak in one clear voice and show that bigotry has no place in Gainesville," said Ben Cavataro, an author of the bill and Orange and Blue Party leader. "It will affect the whole university."
Cavataro also said senators will join Mayor Pegeen Hanrahan, Alachua County Commissioners and the Faculty Senate standing up against the amendment.
Garner encouraged both students and senators to vote in city elections, which will be held March 24.
"City politics is what determines a lot about our lives at UF," he said. "There are enough of us here that we can do the right thing."
Many senators also spoke in favor of a second resolution, which is also affecting students of the UF community.
Gator Party Sen. Megan Vu has been working on the resolution addressing the recent elimination of Vietnamese and Korean programs since last fall and will be presenting it during next week's Senate meeting on Tuesday.
Before the programs were cut last June, UF was the only university in the state, public or private, to have these cultural programs.
"This is so much more than a dollar amount," she said. "It's the culture and diversity that UF stands for."
