A gay man in Waikato says he was denied a rental home because of his sexuality. Speaking to Stuff, Lewis Johnston says he and his partner of 15 years were told by a potential landlord that they weren’t wanted as tenants because they are gay. After he approached a woman he knew owned rental properties at the Hamilton Night Markets, Johnston says that he was given the address of a property to look at and that the woman offered to help him with the bond .After speaking to her husband however she told Lewis the answer was no because he was gay. He told Stuff that the recent events against LGBTI people in Turkey and in Orlando tipped him over the edge and he got very angry. "That's what's really done it for me. I might have just sat back and taken it, but I thought, no, bugger it. I'm 54, I'm not going to take it any more.” Harcourts was the agency for this property and appalled after hearing about the discrimination faced by Johnston they cancelled the property management contract with the landlord and removed the property from their listings.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Thursday, 23rd June 2016 - 12:34pm