Florida Gays Flex Political Muscle
By KEVIN BEGOS The Tampa Tribune
A statewide gay and lesbian group and one in the Tampa Bay area have started political action committees to sway voters this fall and in future elections.
Fueled by concern over proposals to amend the state constitution to ban gay marriage and the actions of Hillsborough County Commissioner Ronda Storms, the committees have few limits on fundraising or spending and thus have the potential to be a significant force in elections.
"We're trying to protect ourselves," said Michael Albetta, president of the GLBT (gay-lesbian-bisexual-transgender) Democratic Caucus, based in Fort Lauderdale. "We're going to flex our muscle and say we're here," he said of perceived indifference or prejudice from politicians.
The only surprising thing may be how long it has taken for the community to organize, said Daniel Smith, a political science professor from the University of Florida. For example, Miami's large gay community doesn't have the reputation of being as politically active as those in New York or San Francisco.
Albetta said that changed in part because of reports last year that the Florida Republican Party gave $150,000 to a political committee opposing gay marriage.
He stressed that the caucus plans a get-out-the-vote effort. The group combined data from the 2000 census with additional research on people of the same sex who are registered to vote at the same address to come up with detailed estimates of where same-sex couples live.
Though they acknowledge the numbers are an estimate, the data was collected down to the neighborhood level to help focus organizing.
Caucus spokesman Stephen Gaskill said the new political action committee hasn't decided how it will use money it raises. "I wouldn't be surprised if we saw some ads," he said.
Smith said there's a common denominator in judging how much effect any group might have: money.
"It's not going to be anything of great shakes unless there is a real financial commitment," he said, noting that a gay rights group in Colorado recently spent more than $1 million on a TV ad campaign promoting domestic partnerships.
The Florida caucus has 15 chapters statewide and more than 600 official members, Albetta said. One chapter recently formed in Polk City, a rural area near Lakeland.
"This is the groundwork we're laying for 2008," he said, when the group hopes to be more of a political force. In addition to the presidential election, Florida voters may see a proposed amendment on the ballot to ban gay marriage.
Locally, Richard Boylan helped set up the Stonewall Democrats of Pinellas County committee.
"It kind of spontaneously happened," he said. "A lot of people said, 'We really need to have something.'"
Hillsborough County Commissioner Ronda Storms "did us a huge favor last year" by proposing antigay legislation, Boylan said, because that motivated people to fight back.
"Our focus is very much on the local level," he said of the Stonewall Democrats, though some of its members also are part of statewide and national groups.
Smith said the best strategy for the Pinellas and statewide gay groups would be to frame the debate as one about fairness and not gay rights.
John Marble, a spokesman for the National Stonewall Democrats in Washington, said that message resonates on a broader level.
"A lot of cities realize that having a nondiscrimination policy in place really benefits local communities, and businesses are attracted to communities with such laws. A majority of Fortune 500 companies have similar policies," he said.
Source: Tampa-Tribune
A statewide gay and lesbian group and one in the Tampa Bay area have started political action committees to sway voters this fall and in future elections.
Fueled by concern over proposals to amend the state constitution to ban gay marriage and the actions of Hillsborough County Commissioner Ronda Storms, the committees have few limits on fundraising or spending and thus have the potential to be a significant force in elections.
"We're trying to protect ourselves," said Michael Albetta, president of the GLBT (gay-lesbian-bisexual-transgender) Democratic Caucus, based in Fort Lauderdale. "We're going to flex our muscle and say we're here," he said of perceived indifference or prejudice from politicians.
The only surprising thing may be how long it has taken for the community to organize, said Daniel Smith, a political science professor from the University of Florida. For example, Miami's large gay community doesn't have the reputation of being as politically active as those in New York or San Francisco.
Albetta said that changed in part because of reports last year that the Florida Republican Party gave $150,000 to a political committee opposing gay marriage.
He stressed that the caucus plans a get-out-the-vote effort. The group combined data from the 2000 census with additional research on people of the same sex who are registered to vote at the same address to come up with detailed estimates of where same-sex couples live.
Though they acknowledge the numbers are an estimate, the data was collected down to the neighborhood level to help focus organizing.
Caucus spokesman Stephen Gaskill said the new political action committee hasn't decided how it will use money it raises. "I wouldn't be surprised if we saw some ads," he said.
Smith said there's a common denominator in judging how much effect any group might have: money.
"It's not going to be anything of great shakes unless there is a real financial commitment," he said, noting that a gay rights group in Colorado recently spent more than $1 million on a TV ad campaign promoting domestic partnerships.
The Florida caucus has 15 chapters statewide and more than 600 official members, Albetta said. One chapter recently formed in Polk City, a rural area near Lakeland.
"This is the groundwork we're laying for 2008," he said, when the group hopes to be more of a political force. In addition to the presidential election, Florida voters may see a proposed amendment on the ballot to ban gay marriage.
Locally, Richard Boylan helped set up the Stonewall Democrats of Pinellas County committee.
"It kind of spontaneously happened," he said. "A lot of people said, 'We really need to have something.'"
Hillsborough County Commissioner Ronda Storms "did us a huge favor last year" by proposing antigay legislation, Boylan said, because that motivated people to fight back.
"Our focus is very much on the local level," he said of the Stonewall Democrats, though some of its members also are part of statewide and national groups.
Smith said the best strategy for the Pinellas and statewide gay groups would be to frame the debate as one about fairness and not gay rights.
John Marble, a spokesman for the National Stonewall Democrats in Washington, said that message resonates on a broader level.
"A lot of cities realize that having a nondiscrimination policy in place really benefits local communities, and businesses are attracted to communities with such laws. A majority of Fortune 500 companies have similar policies," he said.
Source: Tampa-Tribune
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