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Commissioners can take stand to erase stain of gay pride ban
By ERNEST HOOPER
Published August 17, 2005
Every broadcast of the Hillsborough County Commission meeting begins with an orchestral number reminiscent of Star Wars, and a booming voice grandly introducing each commissioner.
But it's time for the board to get a new musical theme. Let me suggest Stand!, the 1969 Sly and the Family Stone hit that served as a call to arms for the nation. Even 36 years later, the lyrics still resonate for anyone searching for real leadership in government.
Stand.
In the end you'll still be you.
One that's done all the things you set out to do.
State Rep. Faye Culp, R-Tampa, captured the spirit of Stand! when she appeared on WEDU-Ch. 3 last month. As a guest on Tampa Bay Week, Culp spoke passionately about her opposition to the County Commission's ban on recognition of gay pride.
"I was very disappointed in the suddenness of such a ruling," Culp said. "As the parent of a gay son, I was really personally taken aback. As a politico, I have to look at where I am, but I also have to look at what I stand for."
When I heard those comments, I felt like a desert traveler who had just been handed a canteen of water. It was so refreshing to hear a politician speak from the heart, with no hint of pandering, no fear of retribution.
She reminded us that gay people are sons and daughters, brothers and sisters.
Not only did Culp take a stand, she took a risk. Her district comprises South Tampa and parts of Town 'N Country and Westchase; it has leaned Republican in recent elections, and Culp's stance may have offended some conservatives.
But she's still standing.
"Many people in Tampa have worked very hard to give us a worldwide reputation of being a welcoming community, an open-type community," Culp said last week. "With a few comments that have been made, they've undone what we've worked so hard to accomplish.
"I just was very upset, and I'm still upset."
Culp is considering going before the board to discuss the issue. But to date, the commissioners haven't been willing to go on the record and say where they stand on this issue.
Stand
For the things you know are right.
It's the truth that the truth makes them so uptight.
Commissioners keep saying the vote has been blown out of proportion or misinterpreted, but that's because none of them bothered to frame the ban in some kind of context.
The perceived bigotry of the decision has tainted the county's reputation here and abroad. Hillsborough County is now thought of as some backwater place that time has left behind.
The commission could help erase the stain by passing a second resolution that makes it clear that we are a forward-thinking community that rejects hate and embraces people from all walks of life.
It wouldn't solve all the problems resulting from the ban, but it would help.
Stand
Don't you know that you are free
Well at least in your mind if you want to be
While it would be nice to ask the commissioners to simply do the right thing, it's worth noting the benefits each would gain from a second resolution.
Kathy Castor voted against the ban, but if she forwarded this resolution, she would solidify her reputation as the board's voice of reason and bolster her bid for Congress.
Tom Scott, who said the vote wasn't about discrimination, would improve his chances of winning a City Council seat in 2007.
Ken Hagan would distinguish himself after spending three quiet years on the board. People are still snickering about the fact that he wasn't in the room during the vote. (He did vote for a motion that makes it harder to repeal the policy.)
Mark Sharpe would regain his image as a thoughtful, compassionate conservative. So far, he's just been conservative.
Brian Blair would retain some lost political capital. He has been a bull in a china shop since winning election in November, rattling cages and publicly feuding with County Administrator Pat Bean. But he has yet to convince most people he has a firm grasp of complex issues, such as public transit and indigent health care.
Chairman Jim Norman, a Super Bowl Task Force member, would assert himself as the veteran leader of the board. With the city gearing up to bid for the 2008 Republican National Convention, Norman knows all too well the importance of having a national reputation free of controversy.
And Ronda Storms? Well, can't win them all.
That's all I'm saying.
Ernest Hooper can be reached at 813 226-3406 or Hooper@sptimes.com
[Last modified August 17, 2005, 10:37:45]
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