Eight-Year Effort to Protect Students Culminates In Fl Anti-Bullying Victory Florida Becomes 36th State to Pass Anti-Bullying Law
(Tallahassee) After eight years of effort on the part of hundreds of students, parents, educators and civil rights groups, the Florida Safe Schools Coalition celebrates the passage today of a statewide anti-bullying bill.
During today’s unanimous vote, Senators zeroed in on the issue of whether the broad prohibition on bullying requires schools to address specific forms of harassment, including anti-gay bullying. (more)
Dispute stalls bill banning bias over sexual orientation By Anthony Man | Sun-Sentinel
It looked like a big victory for gay and lesbian Floridians and their allies: A state Senate committee overwhelmingly approved legislation last week that would ban discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. (more)
Equality Florida Executive Director Nadine Smith awarded 2008 Florida Humanist of the Year by Humanist of Florida
Nadine has been the executive director of Equality Florida since its inception in 1997. She has led advocacy efforts in Florida at the state level at a time of unprecedented attacks on the LGBT community, serving as Equality Florida’s lead lobbyist in Tallahassee and heading efforts to stop discriminatory legislation and ballot measures and to overturn Florida’s ban on adoption by gay and lesbian parents. Nadine has been recognized for her national and state leadership by organizations around the nation, including the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the Human Rights Campaign, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the National Black Lesbian and Gay Leadership Forum and others. Nadine will receive the award at the 2008 Humanist of Florida Conference in May.
Gay-marriage debate -- not so gay for ban supporters Mar 27, 2008 | by Scott Maxwell If I had to make a prediction, the folks pushing for a gay-marriage ban will either change their techniques or simply stop trying to make their case in person before this campaign is over -- because their effort to do so today in Orlando fell pretty darn flat. (more)
Coalition Travels to Tallahassee to Educate Lawmakers on the
Harm of Florida’s Infamous Adoption Ban Families Lobby for Legislation that Considers the Child’s Best Interest in Certain Adoption Cases
Adoption lobby team meets with Rep. Long (D - St. Petersburg)
(TALLAHASSEE) Today, families, social workers, clergy members, and child advocates traveled to the Capitol to participate in the 3rd Annual Fair Adoption lobby Days, sponsored by the Coalition for Fair Adoption. Families from across the state called on the Florida Legislature to pass a bill that would allow children to be adopted by foster parents, regardless of sexual orientation. (more)
Transgenders do need protection laws October 3, 2007 "We don't serve your kind here, get out." "I don't
rent to people like you." "Don't even bother applying, your
type isn't welcome here." What would you do if you heard these
words. Call a lawyer? Call the newspaper? Fight back? Not if you happen
to be transgender, like me, because in many places that type of discrimination
is completely legal. Really. (more)
Marriage
amendment discriminates September 29, 2007
Floridians are currently witness to the time-honored but hardly honorable
practice of creating the illusion of a crisis where there isn't one.
Don't fall for the ruse. (more)
Equality Florida Member Challenges Bigotry During Far-Right
Summit September 24, 2007
Cathy James - mother of a seven-year-old, founder of Securing Our Children's
Rights (SOCR) and longtime member of Equality Florida - not only attended
the Family Impact Summit, but she also spoke out to challenged the
bigotry being espoused. In so doing, she left a group of anti-gay panelists "speechless." Read
the Box Turtle Bulletin article here.
Florida's proposed same-sex marriage ban threatens everyone's protections September 23, 2007
When misguided religious and political groups attempt to deny gays
legal rights under the guise of protecting marriage, you better watch
out for your own rights. (more)
COMMUNITY RESPONDS TO HATE SUMMIT IN BRANDON September 21, 2007 (BRANDON)
Equality Florida, along with a coalition of faith groups, social justice
organizations and community leaders, today hosted a press conference
and vigil-style protest to express the community’s outrage over
an anti-gay summit being hosted by Bell Shoals Church and attracting
leaders of the nation’s anti-gay industry.
The summit, disguised as a family-friendly conference, included seminars
such as “Homosexuality and Youth” and the “Homosexual
Agenda.”
“These extremists have gotten very good at putting a kinder,
gentler veneer on the same old discredited, dehumanizing and dangerous
message,” said Nadine Smith, Executive Director of Equality Florida. “As
a community we can never allow the lies to go unchallenged. The discrimination
they advocate, the animosity toward gay people they cultivate will
impact the Florida long after they’ve gone back to their own
states.”
Last year, Bell Shoals led a failed but disruptive and mean-spirited
campaign to shut down the Hillsborough Gay-Straight Alliances (GSAs).
They were also strong backers of former County Commissioner Ronda Storms,
who infamously led the passage of a policy banning county agencies
from recognizing gay pride.
San
Diego Mayor Supports Gay Marriage September 19, 2007
San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders expressed his support for same-sex marriage,
after revealing his daughter is gay. View
the video
We need your help to demonstrate Florida's outrage at the damage
sure to be done by hate mongers. September 19, 2007
Tomorrow, a virtual "who's who" of anti-LGBT industry leaders
will descend on the Tampa Bay area for an anti-gay summit deceptively
disguised as a family-friendly conference. (more)
Activists decry 'slap-on-the-wrist' sentence for basher in W. Palm
Teen gets 18 weeks probation for bloody attack on transgendered woman September 13, 2007
An 18-week probation sentence against a teenager who bashed a 39-year-old
pre-operative transgendered woman in West Palm Beach was denounced
this week by Florida's leading GLBT human rights organization and a
slew of concerned bloggers. (read
more)
Basher Get Probation in West Palm Beach Attack September 7, 2007
(West Palm Beach) Equality Florida today condemned the “slap
on the wrist” sentence given to an 18 year old who viciously
beat a transgender women last year. (read
more)
Time to give transgenders rights, not ridicule South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com | August 5, 2007
Last summer, when my cholesterol count came back high, my wife signed
me up with a personal trainer. "You'll like him," she said. "He's
got an interesting story." (read more)
Hate-crimes bill punishes violent acts Fort Myers News Press EDITORIAL | August 2, 2007
Efforts to demonize a proposed hate-crimes law in Congress are at best naive and at worst dishonest. (read more)
If you have news or events that you would like to see Equality Florida cover in the pages of Equality News or on this Web site, please send your comments and suggestions to brian@eqfl.org or call / write:
Brian Winfield
Communications Director
EQUALITY FLORIDA
PO Box 13184 • St. Petersburg, FL • 33733
727-490-0959
Brian@EQFL.org
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