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Steve Stanton was the City Manager of Largo, Florida (located in Pinellas County north of St. Petersburg) for 14 years, from 1993 to 2007. An alumnus of the University of Florida, Mr. Stanton proved to be a competent and hard-working employee, receiving stellar performance reviews year after year and commanding a six-figure salary. He managed a department with a multimillion dollar budget and just over one thousand employees. He was happily married with children and lived out the "Florida dream" lifestyle that so many of us wish to attain.
Until, one day, he acknowledged an inner - and innately biological - truth. "He" was really a "she." And he wasn't going to hide it anymore.
Today, transformation complete, Steve is happily living as Susan Stanton. In a rational and tolerant world, that would be the end of the story. Of course, neither of those adjectives correctly qualify our nation when it comes to social freedoms. In February of 2007, shortly after it became publicly known that Stanton was transgendered, an abrupt and unscheduled meeting of the Largo City Commission was called. In a 5 to 2 vote, Stanton - who up until this point had no reprimands for his job performance - was placed on administrative leave, and was fired shortly after.
Let's be extremely clear about one thing: when the Christian social conservatives talk about "family values", these are the types of "values-based decisions" they want to impose on us all. They do not frame "family values" in the way that most of the rest of us do. They don't give a damn about the quality of the education your kid receives in public schools. They don't care about whether or not your family can afford sufficient healthcare coverage. They're indifferent to inner-city poverty, to rising malnutrition among minority youth, to the digital divide, escalating college tuition, and so many other issues of equity facing so many families struggling to stay in the middle class.
In their twisted minds, an agenda of "family values" boils down to keeping people like Susan Stanton hidden away from the public in some back alley, denied the basic civil and human rights that the rest of us enjoy. We simply can't let them win, because people's lives and livelihoods are on the line. If you have any doubts regarding the extent and degree of their malice, just consider their current attempts to rip apart 18,000 loving same-sex marriages - and families - in California.
If you think that your vote doesn't matter, just consider this: in Gainesville today, Susan Stanton would still have her job because it is illegal to discriminate against somebody based on gender identity and/or expression. Largo had no such statute, and Charter Amendment 1 would erase those protections for LGBT Gainesvillians. Those laws matter; as the unfortunate situation with Ms. Stanton indicates, they are sometimes the only barrier protecting certain members of our society from being thrown into the proverbial lion's pit by the ignorant and intolerant. As just one of many possible proofs, ask yourself just how many African American businessmen and businesswomen were working for white-majority companies in Southern states prior to Title VII.
I fell in love with Gainesville as a city long before I had the great fortune of living there for 3 years as a student. When opponents of the hateful Charter Amendment 1 proclaim that "Equality is Gainesville's Business", what they're uttering is more than a cheesy political anthem. Gainesville is somewhat unique among Florida's cities. It is not a government capitol like Tallahassee. It is not a retiree beach city like St. Augustine, Vero Beach, or Naples. It does not have the military presence of Fort Walton Beach or Panama City. It is not a tourist resort like Orlando. It is not a financial center like Jacksonville or Tampa. It is certainly not a bustling global city like Miami.
Yes, Gainesville is a "college town" - it is in fact one of the most idealized models of a college town that you'll find anywhere. But underneath even that, I would argue that it is first and foremost - like Key West - a city that defines itself by its diversity, multiculturalism, and openness. When I think of Gainesville, I think of it as being a city marked by pluralism and cultural richness more so than as a city marked by boatloads of students (though, of course, Gainesville would likely be indistinguishable from Lake City were it not home to UF.) Equality literally is Gainesville's business in that sense - what open-minded students would want to attend college in a place marked by a regressive social agenda?
As far as LGBT issues go, Gainesville holds an extremely special place to me. Gainesville was the city where I came out and was promptly accepted by virtually all of my friends and UF acquaintances. Having outed myself, I went on my first date in Gainesville at a restaurant on Archer Road. I first flew the rainbow flag in my room in Gainesville, first listened to gay radio programs in Gainesville, and in so many ways fully identified myself as gay while living there. So when I read that 58% of Gainesville residents had voted against Amendment 2 in November (even as 62% of Floridians voted "Yes"), I was hardly surprised. That's the essence of the city I fell in love with so long ago. I've chosen two college cities in my life. While the second choice hasn't gone all that well to say the least, I couldn't be prouder of the first. For the years that I lived there, Gainesville was more to me than a random place where I attended classes. It was my adopted city, where I read the local newspaper, voted in the local elections, assisted local charities, and absorbed as much of the local culture as I could in the three (far too short) years that I was fortunate enough to call the place "home." Whenever I'm traveling to South Florida, I always try to stop in Gainesville for some time, even if for no longer than to fill up my car with gas and pick up copies of The Gainesville Sun and The Alligator.
Tomorrow, I hope that residents of Gainesville don't let me down. Gainesville residents - be you UF students or long-term locals - make us all proud at the polls tomorrow. Remind us just why you live in such a great city, a city where all people are welcome, where inclusiveness, curiosity, and pluralism win out over division, fear, and segregation.
Make us proud, Gainesville. We're all watching, and we all have our hopes set very high.
Until, one day, he acknowledged an inner - and innately biological - truth. "He" was really a "she." And he wasn't going to hide it anymore.
Today, transformation complete, Steve is happily living as Susan Stanton. In a rational and tolerant world, that would be the end of the story. Of course, neither of those adjectives correctly qualify our nation when it comes to social freedoms. In February of 2007, shortly after it became publicly known that Stanton was transgendered, an abrupt and unscheduled meeting of the Largo City Commission was called. In a 5 to 2 vote, Stanton - who up until this point had no reprimands for his job performance - was placed on administrative leave, and was fired shortly after.
Let's be extremely clear about one thing: when the Christian social conservatives talk about "family values", these are the types of "values-based decisions" they want to impose on us all. They do not frame "family values" in the way that most of the rest of us do. They don't give a damn about the quality of the education your kid receives in public schools. They don't care about whether or not your family can afford sufficient healthcare coverage. They're indifferent to inner-city poverty, to rising malnutrition among minority youth, to the digital divide, escalating college tuition, and so many other issues of equity facing so many families struggling to stay in the middle class.
In their twisted minds, an agenda of "family values" boils down to keeping people like Susan Stanton hidden away from the public in some back alley, denied the basic civil and human rights that the rest of us enjoy. We simply can't let them win, because people's lives and livelihoods are on the line. If you have any doubts regarding the extent and degree of their malice, just consider their current attempts to rip apart 18,000 loving same-sex marriages - and families - in California.
If you think that your vote doesn't matter, just consider this: in Gainesville today, Susan Stanton would still have her job because it is illegal to discriminate against somebody based on gender identity and/or expression. Largo had no such statute, and Charter Amendment 1 would erase those protections for LGBT Gainesvillians. Those laws matter; as the unfortunate situation with Ms. Stanton indicates, they are sometimes the only barrier protecting certain members of our society from being thrown into the proverbial lion's pit by the ignorant and intolerant. As just one of many possible proofs, ask yourself just how many African American businessmen and businesswomen were working for white-majority companies in Southern states prior to Title VII.
I fell in love with Gainesville as a city long before I had the great fortune of living there for 3 years as a student. When opponents of the hateful Charter Amendment 1 proclaim that "Equality is Gainesville's Business", what they're uttering is more than a cheesy political anthem. Gainesville is somewhat unique among Florida's cities. It is not a government capitol like Tallahassee. It is not a retiree beach city like St. Augustine, Vero Beach, or Naples. It does not have the military presence of Fort Walton Beach or Panama City. It is not a tourist resort like Orlando. It is not a financial center like Jacksonville or Tampa. It is certainly not a bustling global city like Miami.
Yes, Gainesville is a "college town" - it is in fact one of the most idealized models of a college town that you'll find anywhere. But underneath even that, I would argue that it is first and foremost - like Key West - a city that defines itself by its diversity, multiculturalism, and openness. When I think of Gainesville, I think of it as being a city marked by pluralism and cultural richness more so than as a city marked by boatloads of students (though, of course, Gainesville would likely be indistinguishable from Lake City were it not home to UF.) Equality literally is Gainesville's business in that sense - what open-minded students would want to attend college in a place marked by a regressive social agenda?
As far as LGBT issues go, Gainesville holds an extremely special place to me. Gainesville was the city where I came out and was promptly accepted by virtually all of my friends and UF acquaintances. Having outed myself, I went on my first date in Gainesville at a restaurant on Archer Road. I first flew the rainbow flag in my room in Gainesville, first listened to gay radio programs in Gainesville, and in so many ways fully identified myself as gay while living there. So when I read that 58% of Gainesville residents had voted against Amendment 2 in November (even as 62% of Floridians voted "Yes"), I was hardly surprised. That's the essence of the city I fell in love with so long ago. I've chosen two college cities in my life. While the second choice hasn't gone all that well to say the least, I couldn't be prouder of the first. For the years that I lived there, Gainesville was more to me than a random place where I attended classes. It was my adopted city, where I read the local newspaper, voted in the local elections, assisted local charities, and absorbed as much of the local culture as I could in the three (far too short) years that I was fortunate enough to call the place "home." Whenever I'm traveling to South Florida, I always try to stop in Gainesville for some time, even if for no longer than to fill up my car with gas and pick up copies of The Gainesville Sun and The Alligator.
Tomorrow, I hope that residents of Gainesville don't let me down. Gainesville residents - be you UF students or long-term locals - make us all proud at the polls tomorrow. Remind us just why you live in such a great city, a city where all people are welcome, where inclusiveness, curiosity, and pluralism win out over division, fear, and segregation.
Make us proud, Gainesville. We're all watching, and we all have our hopes set very high.
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