Florida county "abstains from" gay pride

TAMPA, Fla. — It started with a few complaints about a public library exhibit on gay authors and resulted in an ordinance that has drawn the ire of gay-rights advocates around the nation.

The Hillsborough County Commission approved by 5-1, with one abstention, a policy that directs the county government to "abstain from acknowledging, promoting or participating" in gay-pride recognition or events. The measure was passed June 15, after a Gay and Lesbian Pride Month display at the West Gate Regional Library in Tampa upset some library patrons.

The commission also voted to require a supermajority vote of 5-2 to overturn the policy.

Meagan Albright, a graduate student at the University of South Florida, created the exhibit on gay authors and literature to fulfill a requirement for a course on diversity. As part of the exhibit, Albright made pamphlets available listing counseling resources for teenagers who have questions about their sexuality.

Commissioner Ronda Storms, who introduced the measure and has received the brunt of criticism locally about it, said the pamphlet troubled her the most.

"One of the things that occurred was that pamphlets were being distributed to children by librarians who are county employees," Storms said, "and they referred children to youth groups outside Hillsborough County to explore their sexuality."

Hector Vargas, southern regional director of Lambda Legal, a civil-rights group, said it was not the first time that a local government had sought to adopt an anti-gay policy. But he said it might be the first time in recent years that one so broad had succeeded. "Typically we've seen these types of policies in the private sector."

The county's policy has angered gay-rights advocates across the country. "From a national perspective, we haven't seen anything like this," said Paul Cates, the American Civil Liberties Union's (ACLU) director of public education for lesbian and gay rights.

Community leaders in Tampa said the policy damaged recent efforts to promote the Tampa region as being multicultural and diverse.

While the measure is not popular with gay-rights supporters, Renee Lee, the Hillsborough County attorney, said it was legal. "If the county doesn't want to spend money promoting gay rights, they can do that," Lee said. "It's not a constitutional breach. This is not a free-speech issue."