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Dean inspires gays in florida { February 13 2005 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/florida/orl-asecflgays13021305feb13,0,465766.story?coll=sfla-news-floridahttp://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/florida/orl-asecflgays13021305feb13,0,465766.story?coll=sfla-news-florida
Rebel Dean inspires gays in Florida
A Democratic caucus meeting in Orlando sets its sights on revitalizing unity in the gay community.
By Tania deLuzuriaga
Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted February 13 2005
With a rebel now heading the Democratic Party, Florida's gay Democrats vowed Saturday to be puppets of their party no longer and to bring social issues to the front of their party's concerns.
"I don't want to reach across the aisle; I want to win," said Orlando City Commissioner Patty Sheehan, who is openly gay. "Republicans used our community as a wedge in the [2004] election."
Sheehan was one of about 40 Democrats from across the state to attend the quarterly meeting of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transsexual Caucus of the Florida Democratic Party in Orlando. Agreeing that a lack of organization hurt Democrats in November, they said unity will be vital if they are to overcome roadblocks to gay civil rights.
"We have four more years with [President] George [Bush], and we have a big X on our heads," caucus President Michael Albetta said.
Already, a group with ties to conservative Christians has launched a petition to ban gay marriage in Florida. The group hopes voters in 2006 will amend the state constitution to declare that marriage is a union between "only one man and one woman" and that no other kind of union is equivalent to marriage.
State law bans same-sex marriage, but an amendment would remove the Legislature's authority to change that.
In addition to social issues, the caucus is focused on the re-election campaign of Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson and the Florida governor's race, both in 2006.
November's election, in which the issue of gay marriage figured prominently, "was a real wake-up for a lot of gays," said delegate Warren Day of Pompano Beach. "A lot of us hadn't realized how hostile things were. We thought we were beyond that."
The caucus also heard from Scott Maddox, chairman of the Florida Democratic Party, who called Saturday afternoon from the Democratic National Committee meeting in Washington.
Maddox promised to offer more political candidates "with guts," saying that in the last election "our candidates were afraid to tell what was exactly in their hearts." Several members of the caucus criticized Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry for running a presidential campaign that was too cautious and never took a hard stand.
"We're liberal; we're not in the middle," said Donnell Morris of Fort Lauderdale. "Let's get away from that."
News that former Vermont governor and presidential candidate Howard Dean had been elected the new chairman of the DNC was met with cheers and a standing ovation from the crowd.
Although Dean's strong opinions and caustic comments have sometimes led to controversy, caucus members said he understands gay issues and realizes that gays and lesbians are a vital part of the Democratic Party.
"Democrats have always prided themselves on being a grass-roots party," said Katy Peterson of Wilton Manors. "That's what we're getting back to."
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