Watermark Issue 30.04: Red Alert

The LGBTQ+ community and their allies fought for years to be treated with fairness, dignity and respect and right now there’s a push to take away those hard-won rights.

– FLORIDA REP. FENTRICE DRISKELL, HOUSE MINORITY LEADER

Love Yourself. Get Tested.

Commit to Sexual Health in 2023

loves. Despite the name, the team’s most Marvelous members have always been its women; it doesn’t get better than Jean Grey, Rogue or Storm.

Not all heroes wear capes, of course, unless they’re in fashion. I remember being introduced to one of mine in particular at around eight or nine years old, a female figure I was captivated by from the moment I saw her.

DESK EDITOR’S

I’ve been drawn to them my entire life, beginning with my mother. It was just the two of us during most of my formative years, when she showed me it’s possible to be resilient, resourceful and still lead with your heart.

My grandmother was the same way, another shining example that love is a strength, not a weakness. I’m forever grateful for every lesson they taught me about working to be kind, decent and just in a world that often isn’t.

Another of my favorites is my sister. We didn’t grow up together but reconnected in my late teens, quickly making up for lost time. Insightful, loving and hilarious, she’s the kind of person you always want in your corner. Literally. I wish she’d move to Florida.

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I’ve known even more that have had a profound impact on me – aunts, cousins and other family, chosen and not – but there are plenty I couldn’t possibly meet that have stuck with me. Mainly because I’ve always been a pop (and sometimes not-so-pop) culture junkie, with a strong admiration for books, television and film.

Disney princesses like Ariel, Belle, Jasmine and Tiana come to mind — another unsurprising take, I realize — and of course, Princess-turned-General Leia Organa from “Star Wars.” I’m a sucker for space, so “Star Trek” staples Lt. Uhura, Dr. Crusher and Cdr. Troi are also a must.

Nerd alert, I know, but I’d be remiss not to also mention the “X-Men.” The cartoon and comic book were two of my earliest

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She was outspoken. She was unapologetic. She was intriguing and kind. She was also one of the most beautiful women I’d ever seen. She just happened to be a man in a wig.

RuPaul fascinated me.

I remember watching the music video for “Supermodel (You Better Work)” in toe-tapping awe, convinced that her brand of camp and charm was a new gold standard. For a lot of folks it’s certainly become that, especially those on the “RuPaul’s Drag Race” payroll; the reality competition has become a cultural phenomenon since its 2009 premiere.

Things were different in the early ‘90s, for the show’s namesake and certainly for me. I was a child, for one, and it was still years before I understood we were both gay men. I just appreciated RuPaul’s artistry for what it was: powerful and unique. Like I said, strong female figures have always resonated with me.

It was the drag legend’s authenticity that drew me in, obvious even under the makeup, hair and heels. She’s famously said over the years that we’re all born naked and the rest is drag and she’s a perfect example of that. Her aura shines through in and outside of the artform, and while she’s had a less than inclusive record at times, there’s no denying she’s a trailblazer who’s ready to learn. I admire that.

Years after its 1995 publication, I devoured RuPaul’s

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autobiography “Lettin’ It All Hang Out.” In it, she shares that “some of the most unforgettable women in the world... are men.”

I couldn’t agree more.

It’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately as Republican outrage targets drag around the country. Here in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis has even set his sights on venues for hosting family friendly shows like “A Drag Queen Christmas.”

It’s ridiculous and transparent, a culture war designed to elevate the governor’s presidential ambitions. It’s time for each of us to stand up for those in drag, and we don’t even need heels to do it. So many of them have certainly

BRYANA SALDANA is a 25-year-old, Afro-Latina poet born and raised in Orlando. Saldana had her first published poem through “Women Who Roar.” Saldana’s pronouns are She/Her They. Page 15

JOHNNY V. BOYKINS is a Democratic Strategist in Pinellas County, a husband, bow tie aficionado, amateur chef and U.S. Coast Guard veteran. He also serves with the Pinellas Democratic Party. Page 17

stood up for our entire community over the years.

In this issue we speak with equality-focused organizations and lawmakers fighting back against anti-LGBTQ animus in the state. They preview what LGBTQ and ally Floridians can expect from the 2023 legislative session, which starts next month with a Republican supermajority.

In Tampa Bay news, we look back on Florida Entertainer of the Year, detail ReadOut: A Festival of LGBTQ Literature and Metro Inclusive Health CEO Lorraine Langlois announces her retirement. DeSantis’ attacks on drag and the LGBTQ community are detailed in Central Florida and State News.

Watermark strives to bring you a variety of stories, your stories. Please stay safe, stay informed and enjoy this latest issue.

HOLLY KAPHERR ALEJOS, SABRINA AMBRA, ABBY BAKER, STEVE BLANCHARD, DEBORAH BOSTOCK-KELLEY, JOHNNY BOYKINS, NATHAN BRUEMMER, BIANCA GOOLSBY, JAKOB HERO-SHAW, LORA KORPAR, JASON LECLERC, JERICK MEDIAVILLA, MELODY MAIA MONET, TIFFANY RAZZANO, GREG STEMM, SYLVIE TREVENA, DR. STEVE YACOVELLI, ANGELIQUE YOUNG, MICHAEL WANZIE

PHOTOGRAPHY

BRIAN BECNEL, NICK CARDELLO, J.D. CASTO, BRUCE HARDIN, JAMARQUS MOSLEY, CHRIS STEPHENSON, LEE VANDERGRIFT

Founder and Guiding Light: Tom Dyer

1300 N. Semoran Blvd. Ste 250 Orlando, FL 32807

TEL: 407-481-2243

TAMPA BAY OFFICE 401 33rd Street N. St. Petersburg, FL 33713 TEL: 813-655-9890

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publication.

WATERMARK is not responsible for damages due to typographical errors, except for the cost of replacing ads created by WATERMARK that have such errors. Watermark Publishing Group Inc.

STRONG FEMALE FIGURES HAVE always resonated with me. I know that may not be a unique or surprising statement for a gay man to make, but it’s no less true.

It’s time for each of us to stand up for those in drag, and we don’t even need heels to do it.

Ryan Williams-Jent MANAGING EDITOR Ryan@WatermarkOnline.com

I also don’t think that everyone else in society should be responsible for dealing with your children or pets. Service pets aside, you don’t have to bring your pets into every place you visit and every business doesn’t have to cater to your children.

DESK EDITOR’S

IAM SINGLE AND I HAVE NO children and no pets of my own. I have family and friends who have them and that is great. I enjoy when my brother has to head out of town for a few days and I get to spend time pet sitting for his Boston Terrier, Mr. Finnegan, and I love when my niblings (a gender-neutral term for nieces and nephews — look it up, it is a real word. I promise) come to visit and I get to be the cool guncle (gay uncle — another absolutely not made up word) who lets them do whatever they want.

Because I am single, some people automatically think I am a sad, lonely gay man who stares out the window longingly for Prince Charming to show up. I assure you that isn’t the case. I enjoy my alone time and have many friends who I can reach out to and hang out with if I need human connection.

I have also been accused by some in my life of hating kids and animals because I do not have, nor want,

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any of my own. The truth is I have no problem whatsoever with living, breathing creatures under your watch, but I do not want to look at hundreds of pictures and videos of them doing unexciting activities like eating, jumping or attempting to do a cartwheel. The only exception is videos of babies uncontrollably laughing and pets trying to talk like humans. I do get a kick out of those.

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A friend recently shared a post on her Facebook page from Nettie’s House of Spaghetti, a restaurant in Tinton Falls, New Jersey. In the post the restaurant shares its new policy that children under 10 will no longer be permitted to dine at Nettie’s.

“We love kids. We really, truly, do. But lately, it’s been extremely challenging to accommodate children at Nettie’s,” the post reads. “Between noise levels, lack of space for highchairs, cleaning up crazy messes, and the liability of kids running around the restaurant, we have decided that it’s time to take control of the situation. This wasn’t a decision that was made lightly, but some recent events have pushed us to implement this new policy.”

A handful of people managed to comment on the post before Nettie’s turned them off but in between those that made it on and comments on the restaurant’s other posts, this decision seems to have divided people. Some complaining that their choice to place an age restriction was “really sad to hear” or was a “harsh” policy and some cheering on the idea, writing “I agree with this 100%” and advising those who are upset about it that “There’s always take out.”

Personally, I applaud their decision and hope more restaurants — particularly those in the Central Florida area — start to adopt this policy. People need to start realizing that not all spaces are for everyone. There are lots of restaurants and businesses geared toward families and children. Having a few locations to go to for those who are looking for a quiet evening with no kids being loud and running around would not only be a selling point for me but I would think it would

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be a welcome change for parents who are maybe looking for a night away from their kids and don’t want to deal with the noise of other’s children.

I saw several comments on Nettie’s page with parents complaining that their kids are always well behaved and never make a mess, and they shouldn’t have to be punished. I think they need to stop looking at this as a punishment and look at it as a lesson that not everything is for you. Also, your children are not as well behaved as you think they are. Parents always think they have perfect angels and I hate to be the one to break it to you, they are not. All children, especially younger ones, have their moments

BRYANA SALDANA is a 25-year-old, Afro-Latina poet born and raised in Orlando. Saldana had her first published poem through “Women Who Roar.” Saldana’s pronouns are She/Her They. Page 15

JOHNNY V. BOYKINS is a Democratic Strategist in Pinellas County, a husband, bow tie aficionado, amateur chef and U.S. Coast Guard veteran. He also serves with the Pinellas Democratic Party. Page 17

of frustration and anger and communicate that by yelling, crying and throwing tantrums. Your choice to have kids is not my problem to bear.

When I was a teenager, I worked at a Carmike Cinemas in Plant City, Florida that had one of its theaters affixed with a kitchen and bar. It was called Mugs & Movies and in the last showing of the night, regardless of what film was playing, patrons were allowed to smoke and no one under 18 was allowed in the theater. I can’t tell you how many people thanked us for having that policy — single folks, couples and even parents.

Hate me all you want mommies and daddies, but I would love to see this policy expand outside of restaurants and cinemas to include more businesses like live theatre venues and airlines. Not every single one of them but, like Mugs & Movies, have select flights and showtimes that are restricted to adults so those of us who want a grown-up-only outing can have that option.

ORLANDO

HOLLY KAPHERR ALEJOS, SABRINA AMBRA, ABBY BAKER, STEVE BLANCHARD, DEBORAH BOSTOCK-KELLEY, JOHNNY BOYKINS, NATHAN BRUEMMER, BIANCA GOOLSBY, JAKOB HERO-SHAW, LORA KORPAR, JASON LECLERC, JERICK MEDIAVILLA, MELODY MAIA MONET, TIFFANY RAZZANO, GREG STEMM, SYLVIE TREVENA, DR. STEVE YACOVELLI, ANGELIQUE YOUNG, MICHAEL WANZIE

PHOTOGRAPHY

BRIAN BECNEL, NICK CARDELLO, J.D. CASTO, BRUCE HARDIN, JAMARQUS MOSLEY, CHRIS STEPHENSON, LEE VANDERGRIFT

Founder and Guiding Light: Tom Dyer

1300 N. Semoran Blvd. Ste 250 Orlando, FL 32807

TEL: 407-481-2243

DISTRIBUTION AFFILIATIONS

LVNLIF2 DISTRIBUTING, KEN CARRAWAY, RAYLENE HUNT, ZACHARY WELCH

publication.

WATERMARK is not responsible for damages due to typographical errors, except for the cost of replacing ads created by WATERMARK that have such errors. Watermark Publishing Group Inc.

Not all spaces are for everyone.

DESANTIS ADMINISTRATION MOVES FORWARD TO REVOKE THE PLAZA LIVE’S LICENSE

Jeremy Williams

ORLANDO | Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration has begun the process to revoke the liquor license of The Plaza Live over the theater hosting a Christmas-themed drag event in December that was attended by minors.

The Department of Business and Professional Regulation, division of alcoholic beverages and tobacco, filed a formal, six-count complaint Feb. 3 against the Orlando Philharmonic Plaza Foundation, the organization that operates The Plaza Live. It alleges that the theater knowingly exposed children to “sexually explicit content” during “A Drag Queen Christmas” on Dec. 28.

The complaint alleges that children, some “appearing to be less than 6 years of age,” were welcomed into the show which contained drag performers “wearing sexually suggestive clothing and prosthetic female genitalia.” The complaint goes on to state that the show featured “numerous segments where performers engaged in acts of sexual conduct, simulated sexual activity, and lewd, vulgar, and indecent displays.”

The Plaza Live management did hang a notice at the theater’s entrance, according to the complaint, that stated “While we are not restricting access to anyone under 18 please be advised some may think the context is not appropriate for under 18.”

The complaint states that while this notice was hung on the doors of the theater, the website’s event information read “All ages welcome.” The complaint is accompanied by several photos from the show as well as pictures of minors who appear to have attended.

While this is the eighth consecutive year that “A Drag Queen Christmas” has played at The Plaza Live, this is the first time the state has attempted to punish the theater for hosting it.

The DBPR sent a letter to The Plaza Live ahead of the show in December stating that if they allowed minors into the show that “you are putting your license in jeopardy.”

“To avoid action being taken against your license, it is your obligation to ensure that minors are prohibited from attending the Drag Fans drag show,” the original letter stated. “If minors are allowed to attend this drag show, the Department will take any and all actions available to ensure that you do not pose a threat to minors in the future.”

Similar letters were sent to theaters throughout the state who hosted the same show.

The complaint states that The Plaza Live has 21 days to request a hearing to challenge the charges in the complaint. The venue and the organization that owns it had yet to comment on the complaint as of press time.

Pride Banking Climate First Bank partners with The Center Orlando

Shayne Watson

ORLANDO | Climate First Bank has kicked off the new year vowing to donate funds to the LGBT+ Center in Orlando for every Pride Banking account opened until June 30.

To celebrate the LGBTQ community, the Pride Banking account features a $100 donation from Climate First Bank to The Center Orlando, account holders’ preferred name will reflect on debit cards and accounts earn 0.1% interest with no monthly fee.

“We’re excited to promote the account because the more people that we bring in, that’s the more money that we’ll able to contribute to The Center,” Chris Cucci, chief of staff of Climate First Bank, says.

The Center Orlando promotes the intellectual, physical, social, emotional and spiritual well-being of Central Florida’s LGBTQ community through access to quality programs and services.

“LGBTQ rights and environmentalism have always been closely conjoined,” Dr.

George Wallace, CEO of The Center Orlando, said in a press release. “We are incredibly glad for the support of Climate First Bank and its customers as we work together to champion a greener future in an inclusive world.”

The Pride Banking account started in June 2022 with a six-month partnership with the KindRED Pride Foundation. Cucci says the company knew they wanted to change partners throughout the course of the account and allow different organizations to be the recipient of the donations.

“The more I got to know [The Center], I just really became a fan of their mission. We were really excited when they said yes to being our sponsor to kick off 2023,” Cucci says.

Through their previous partnership with KindRED Pride, Cucci says he learned how to better market to the LGBTQ community.

The preferred names and pronoun option was instituted with Climate First Bank initially, but he never thought to market it. Cucci started talking to more

COMMUNITY

people in the community and realized that having preferred names benefited them more than the other services offered.

“Banking is a relationship business,” Cucci says. “We want people to know that if they need to come into the bank or if they need to call us on the phone, it’s okay for that person to be who they are.”

Climate First Bank originated in St. Petersburg, Florida, and expanded to Winter Park last year.

Along with support to the LGBTQ community, Climate First Bank also prides itself in its constant activism towards climate change. Cucci says the company is always looking to engage in projects that are going to have a positive impact on society.

“You have to also attack social issues to do that successfully because a lot of the times, the communities that are most impacted by the effects of climate change, are those communities with low to moderate income,” he says.

Climate First Bank offers applicants debit cards, online banking, business and consumer checking products, savings accounts and different types of loans. Home loan options include electric vehicles, hybrid autos, solar and electric vehicle charging. To open an account, applicants must bring a form of identification and have a minimum balance of $50. A credit check is not required.

AFFAIR: A crowd gathers outside of Climate First Bank’s Winter Park branch for its first Winter Park Values Night.

PHOTO FROM CLIMATE FIRST BANK’S FACEBOOK

The Art & History Museums of Maitland

READOUT EXPANDS IN GULFPORT Ryan Williams-Jent

GULFPORT, FLA. | The LGBTQ Resource Center will present ReadOut: A Festival of LGBTQ Literature Feb. 17-19, expanding from its original lesbian focus.

The sixth annual event is funded by Florida Humanities and presented at no charge. It will take place at the Gulfport Public Library and via Zoom, a hybrid of on-site, livestreamed and prerecorded content available online during and after the gathering.

ReadOut was last held in person in 2020. The event has been held virtually since due to the pandemic, hosting around 1,500 participants in 2022. Its success has shown “there is such a hunger for queer literature,” LGBTQ Resource Center President Susan Gore says.

This year’s ReadOut will mark a return closer to its original form with in-person panels, readings and workshops. Over 80 new and returning authors will participate Feb. 17 from 5-7:30 p.m., 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Feb. 18 and from 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. on Feb. 19.

“There has never been in my lifetime a more important moment for LGBTQ stories to be visible, to be heard and to be appreciated,” Gore says.

Reserve your free ticket and learn more at ReadOut.LGBTQGulfport.org and hear directly from participating authors at WatermarkOnline.com.

METRO CEO TO RETIRE THIS YEAR Ryan Williams-Jent

ST.

PETERSBURG | Metro Inclusive Health

announced Feb. 9 that CEO Lorraine Langlois will retire Dec. 31 after 30 years of service.

Langlois’ work with Metro began in 1993, when the organization offered a single service from a local church, case management for those living with HIV/ AIDS. During her tenure the nonprofit expanded to offer over 100 programs and services throughout Tampa Bay.

“Lorraine has successfully taken the organization from grassroots beginning with just two employees to a nationally recognized organization serving all of Tampa Bay with nearly 200 employees,” Metro shared.

“I am humbled by the opportunity to have worked at a job I loved for so long and with such extraordinary people and leaders,” Langlois added. “The secret to our significant and long-lasting community impact has always been the unwavering dedication of the people of Metro who bring an unmatched emotional connection to the services they perform.”

Metro also announced that Chief Operating & Programs Officer Priya Rajkumar will serve as Metro’s next CEO. Langlois and Rajkumar will serve as co-CEOS for the remainder of the year. “Priya, as CEO and my dear friend, will always have my full support as she continues her successful career,” Langlois said. Read more at WatermarkOnline.com and MetroTampaBay.org.

Sunshine Staple

Florida EOY returns in Tampa Ryan Williams-Jent

TAMPA | Florida Entertainer of the Year welcomed hundreds of supporters to the Ritz Ybor Feb. 5, crowning local entertainer Kenya M. Black in an official preliminary for National Entertainer of the Year F.I.

Eight contestants competed for a $5,000 grand prize, crown, sash, certificate and hotel stay to compete at NEOY in Louisville, Kentucky this July. Joining Black at nationals will be first runner-up Twila Holiday and second runner-up Jay Miah.

Celine, Jewels, Adriana P.T. Fuentes, Christina Embers Taylor and Carrie Elle Milania also competed, entertaining the crowd along with Orlando-based hosts Addison Taylor and Danielle Hunter, NEOY 2018.

Additional performances included NEOY 2015 Sunny Dee Lite, NEOY 2002 Necole Dupree, current reigning NEOY Shontelle Sparkles and Trinity the Tuck, who joined the “RuPaul’s Drag Race” hall of fame following her 2014 NEOY win.

Fellow “Drag Race All Stars” winner Kylie Sonique Love also

performed, with each entertainer posing for meet and greet photos. Organizers Katie and Neil McCurry described the contestants and performers as “some of the most talented drag artists in the country.”

Audiences and judges agreed. The contestants were scored in four categories: presentation, talent, creative evening wear and a Top 5 Q&A. Entertainers reflected on the importance of pageantry and more between each segment.

Trinity, who now resides in Orlando, recalled living in Tampa Bay and being on the cast of Ybor’s Honey Pot and G. Bar. The former LGBTQ hotspot closed during the pandemic and the latter became Southern Nights Tampa.

“I absolutely loved living here. I don’t know why I ever moved to Orlando,” she mused. “I love the beach. I love the people here. The vibe here is so magical. You’re so lucky.”

She also reflected on her continued involvement with Florida and National EOY, thanking event organizers for their dedication and allyship while calling on the audience to support local drag.

“I was a local queen way longer than I was on TV and it is a struggle to bring the high-quality drag that you guys expect of us because of a TV show,” Trinity said. “Be kind to your local entertainers, tip your local entertainers, follow your local entertainers on social media, share their name and tell them you love them.”

Trinity subsequently donated her tips to the hosts and thanked the pageant’s supporters. “I was Florida Entertainer of the Year when I went on to win National, so this really is a huge part of my heart. Please continue to support.”

Sparkles also shared her thoughts on the importance of Florida EOY after a performance.

“My goal is to build the system — and this right now is showing me that it is growing,” she said to applause. “Each and every one of you are showing love to pageantry and I want to thank all of you so much for coming out.”

After her crowning, Black reflected on the experience via social media. “I am beyond honored to be your Florida Entertainer of the Year!!!!” she wrote. “I’m going to make sure to do my best to bring that national crown home!!!!!”

Asked for additional comment, Black kept it brief. “Be ready,” she said.

For more information about Florida Entertainer of the Year, visit FloridaEOY.com. View a full photo gallery at WatermarkOnline.com.

QUEEN ME: Florida Entertainer of the Year Kenya M. Black competes for the crown.

PHOTO BY JAMARCUS MOSLEY

Jo i n y ou r l oc al L G BT C h a mber , a s w e ar e the p r em i er a d v oc a te s

f o r the T a mp a B ay A r e a’ s L G B T bus i ness commun i t y .

EPIC Sexual Health Center Provides Total Sexual Healthcare

www.tampabaylgbtchamber.org

EPIC’s Sexual Health Center offers essential sexual health and disease prevention services through education, support and resources, empowering all people to achieve better sexual health and well-being.

Services include STI diagnostic and treatment services, pregnancy testing and referrals, PrEP and PEP education and medication as well as sexual health education services and workshops with an onsite sexpert.

EPIC’s Sexual Health Center serves Tampa Bay at the following locations:

300 49th St. S. St. Petersburg, 33707 (727) 328-6420

4703 N. Florida Ave. Tampa, 33603 (813) 237-3066

EPIC SEXUAL HEALTH CENTER empath

IfYouSex.org

FLORIDA GOP ADVANCES DISNEY DISTRICT BILL Wire Report

TALLAHASSEE, FLA. | Florida lawmakers advanced proposals Feb. 8 to strip Disney of its self-governing status.

Republicans in a House state affairs committee approved legislation to complete the state takeover of Walt Disney World’s Reedy Creek Improvement District. The measures come as Gov. Ron DeSantis punishes the company over its opposition to a law critics call “Don’t Say Gay or Trans.”

The proposal would leave much of the district intact, including its financial obligations, but would rename it to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District and require DeSantis to appoint a five-member governing board. Board members previously were named through entities controlled by Disney.

“So, there’s a new sheriff in town, and that’s just the way it’s going to be,” DeSantis said Feb. 8.

The Disney district legislation now moves to the full House.

FLORIDA DOCTORS’ BOARD TIGHTENS BAN ON GENDER-AFFIRMING CARE

Wire Report

ORLANDO | A prohibition against puberty blocking hormones and gender-affirming surgeries for minors in Florida was tightened further after a board overseeing doctors eliminated an exception for clinical trials Feb. 10 at the request of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration. Some members of the

Medicine that gender-affirming treatment had been “magical” and like “opening a prison door” for them or their children. One transgender adult man during his testimony gave himself an injection of hormones in front of the doctors’ boards. Others said treatment had stopped them from “fighting with themselves” and contemplating suicide.

The Florida Board of Medicine and the Florida Board of

During the meeting, the Florida Department of Health asked the boards to tweak the rules to eliminate the osteopathic medicine board’s exception for research. The DeSantis administration’s health department got the ball rolling on curbing gender-affirming treatment for minors in Florida last year by petitioning the boards to pass the prohibition. In 2021, DeSantis signed a bill barring transgender girls and women from

IN OTHER NEWS

DEFENSE: CLUB Q SHOOTER VISITED BEFORE

Wire Report

DENVER | The person charged with fatally shooting five people and wounding 17 others at a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs last year was at the venue for more than an hour earlier that night before returning to carry out the mass shooting, according to information disclosed Feb. 10 during a procedural court hearing.

Authorities have previously only said that Anderson Lee Aldrich was seen pulling into a parking lot at Club Q just before midnight on Nov. 19, 2022, where they entered and immediately opened fire.

The new timeline was revealed in passing during the hearing by a defense attorney hoping to get an evidentiary hearing scheduled for later this month delayed, but he did not elaborate.

Defense attorney Joseph Archambault argued that the hearing should be delayed until they can see all the security footage from inside the club that night to determine if, for instance, Aldrich was involved in

any arguments or conversations with others or had been drinking. That information, he contended, could provide key evidence about whether the crime was premeditated or motivated by bias.

Aldrich, who is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns, is charged with hate crimes as well as murder and attempted murder.

Prosecutors and the judge did not dispute the timeline, but what happened during that period earlier that night was not discussed directly, including what time Aldrich was there. There was also a reference to Aldrich being at the club on other occasions in 2021 and 2022, but those visits were not discussed.

Archambault wanted to delay a three-day hearing starting Feb. 22 to determine if Aldrich will stand trial in the case partly because there is no audio yet available for surveillance video showing them in the club before, which may have captured statements they or others made.

Archambault did not return a call seeking more details. His office has a policy of not speaking with reporters.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Reginald Short explained that technical problems had led to a delay of matching up audio with video by forensic video experts. He said he did not think any audio that is joined with the relevant video portions would likely do much to shed light on Aldrich’s state of mind because it would be difficult to hear people talking.

Short also argued that the upcoming preliminary hearing to determine if there is enough evidence for Aldrich to stand trial only requires prosecutors to show probable cause that Aldrich committed the crimes, with the evidence viewed in the prosecution’s favor at this stage of the proceedings.

Judge Michael McHenry denied the defense’s request to delay the hearing, noting that not all the evidence must be presented, because the preliminary hearing is not a “mini trial.” However, he said that if new information comes to light after the hearing he would be open to considering whether that would be enough to consider releasing Aldrich on bond while the case proceeds.

PENCE GROUP TO RUN ADS IN IOWA AGAINST SCHOOL TRANS POLICIES

Wire Report

DES MOINES, IOWA | Former Vice President Mike Pence is stepping up his outreach in Iowa ahead of a possible 2024 presidential campaign by rallying conservatives against transgender-affirming policies in schools, like one adopted in an eastern Iowa district last year. The effort by Advancing American Freedom, a group formed by Pence in 2021 and financed by his supporters, will include digital ads, rallies, canvassing and perhaps radio and television spots. It comes as a federal court in Minnesota is scheduled to hear a case brought by a group representing parents of students in Linn-Mar

Community School District outside Cedar Rapids.

“The strength of our nation is tied to the strength of our families, and we cannot stand idly by as the radical left attempts to indoctrinate our children behind parents’ backs,” Pence said in a statement provided to The Associated Press. “Advancing American Freedom will not rest until parental rights are restored in Iowa and across the nation.”

The Linn-Mar board last year adopted a policy allowing students to request a gender support plan to begin socially transitioning at school and without the permission of their parents. The group representing the parents is suing to overturn the policy.

The planned budget for the effort is more than $1 million, and

the push is expected to last several months, said a Pence aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of a formal announcement.

The moves by the outside group — separate from any potential Pence candidacy — comes as school policy, notably involving gender identification and sexual orientation, has become an early focus of 2024 Republican presidential prospects.

The issue is particularly relevant in Iowa, given both the court case and the Republican-controlled Legislature advancing legislation barring schools from supporting a student’s social change in gender identity.

Pence’s outreach came before a trip to the early-voting state where he headlined an event Feb. 15.

MONTANA BILL WOULD LET STUDENTS MISGENDER CLASSMATES

Montana schools would not be able to punish students who purposely misgender or deadname their transgender peers under a Republican-backed legislative proposal that opponents argue will increase bullying of children who are already struggling for acceptance. The proposal, co-sponsored by more than two dozen GOP lawmakers, would declare that it’s not discrimination to use a transgender classmate’s legal name or refer to them by their birth gender. Schools would be prevented from adopting policies to punish students who do so. The proposal would not apply to teachers.

NC SENATE OKS LIMITS ON LGBTQ SCHOOL INSTRUCTION

Public school teachers in North Carolina would be required in most circumstances to alert parents before they call a student by a different name or pronoun, under a bill passed by the Republican-controlled state Senate Feb. 7. Senators rejected a wave of warnings that the measure could endanger some LGBTQ students who have unsupportive families. While sponsors say the bill is needed to keep parents informed about what their children are being taught in public schools, critics say it would destroy the trust between teachers and their students and make schools unsafe spaces for LGBTQ and questioning children to explore their identities at their own pace. The proposal, which passed the Senate 29-18, would also prohibit instruction about gender identity and sexuality in K-4 classrooms, with an exception for “student-initiated questions.” It now heads to the House, where Republicans are one seat shy of a supermajority and likely would need some Democratic support to push it through. A similar version had passed the Senate last session but didn’t get a vote in the House.

FINLAND APPROVES CHANGES TO TRANSGENDER LAWS

Finland’s 200-seat parliament, the Eduskunta, voted 113-69 Feb. 1 in favor of amendments that will make it substantially easier for people to change their legally recognized gender in the Nordic country. The amendments, which are expected to take effect as soon as possible, also abolish a provision that required transgender people to provide a medical certificate proving they were infertile or sterilized before the government would recognize their gender identity. That part of the existing law was intended to keep transgender individuals from having children. The bill allows transgender individuals who are 18 or older in Finland to legally change their genders by self-declaration without having to supply a psychiatric assessment and the certificate on their ability to reproduce. To prevent misuse of the revised law, such requests only can be made once a year.

Bryana Saldana

DIARY OF A POET

Literature and history

LITERATURE AND history are the pathways to understanding the world around you, especially one that does not reflect your identity. Imagine walking around your whole life and not seeing one person representing an often-complicated existence, be that because of skin color, disability, sexuality or gender. Books and history shake up someone’s lived experience and make others aware of experiences that do not or will never align with their lived experience.

The first book that helped me with my identity was “Annie On My Mind” by Nancy Garden, written in the 1980s. I was lucky enough to find it in my middle school library in Orlando in the late 2000s. Books have always been and continue to be an escape path for me. “Annie On My Mind” was no exception. This was the first book that helped me see and understand becoming a lesbian and the ever-changing complicated aspects of living my truth. The book explores a relationship between two girls that meet at a museum in New York City, and things become complex. Growing up without a direct representation of this identity, I was left attempting to figure out a significant hole in my lived experience alone. This book permitted me to seek more literature and some remnant of community through books I was soon to discover.

As we all know, literature and history in Florida are under attack. I can’t imagine not being able to find a book to help me with complicated feelings no one around me could guide me through. Florida has been attempting to devalue the presence of the LGBTQ community for over a year now by enacting “Don’t Say Gay or Trans,” which persecutes those in the education system attempting to discusses the LGBTQ community in any capacity. It leaves unsafe spaces for children to live authentically, spaces that they may not be offered in their homes. Not

being able to read books to help figure out life seems to be the cruelest thing in the world. Books are as important as food to a child; they are food for the mind, spirit and heart. They give you a soft place to land when everything around you looks like boulders coming out of the ground. Florida is building boulders for children that cannot even spell it yet. We need safe spaces like schools and the library to unfold because those cost no one anything. Now those spaces will cost so much more than the world has to offer. It’s akin to starving children of joy, community and compassion. When it came to being a Black person in this country, watching our existence be treated as if our flesh is disposable, “Between the World and Me” helped shape my understanding beyond what I have already witnessed and read. This fantastic book by Ta-Nehisi Coates is a letter from a father to his son after the verdict that the police who killed Michael Brown would not be persecuted. His son’s reaction to this was one of pure heartbreak. Coates attempts to comfort his son with the reality and the delusions that plague life as a Black person in the United States of America. This book prompted me to write dozens of poems about the many Black spirits left behind because police targeted them. Florida is attempting to take away the awareness that could save lives. They want to quiet our history for no other reason than to spread hate and bigotry and insert control in a nation built in large part by slave labor. When you read “Between the World and Me,” you are taken through several pathways Coates shapes to provide extensive context as to why those people were not persecuted for murder. Florida is setting the stage for this nation to further devalue the most vulnerable groups of people since the beginning of time.

A generation being born could be without the necessary literature and

history to inform them of others and possibly their experience. These laws being enacted are missing key elements such as compassion, freedom, joy, understanding and love. We as a nation are being transported back in time when I would not even have the freedom to write

Maya Angelou, Sister Soulja, Toni Morison and James Baldwin. These writers inform us of lives beyond my experience and provide us with much-needed history within the borders of this nation and beyond of how Black and LGBTQ people were treated.

associated with living your truth if it does not align with the vast majority. Being the minority should never feel powerless, but sometimes it does. Love should always be at the forefront for people, especially children. These children deserve to be empowered through literature

what I am writing to you. Where my words would hold no value in any room I walked into that did not reflect my identity, which was 50-60 years ago. Why is this not a nation that considers the natural history of marginalized people and makes it an even field? Imagine not being able to consume Nancy Garden, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Malcolm X,

More importantly, children are being left without support, love and comfort within the structure of a free education, which many people within these marginalized groups will only receive up to 12th grade. Florida is attempting to take away the power of awareness, which can only create better people to enact better laws — breaking away the chains of the trauma

and history. Intentional love is the most necessary ingredient to sustain, grow and become.

Bryana Saldana is an Afro-Latina poet born and raised in Orlando. Saldana had her first published poem through “Women Who Roar.” Saldana’s pronouns are She/Her/They.

is setting the stage for this nation to further devalue the most vulnerable groups of people since the beginning of time.

myself why DeSantis is doing this and I think it comes back to it serving his political agenda.

These attacks on public education have hit close to home. The recently elected, DeSantis-backed Pinellas County School Board caught the attention of the public when they ushered in a review of books and instructional material, resulting in the banning of Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eyes” from all high schools. School boards across the state are following suit with book bans and scrutiny of student clubs and associations to girl sports teams.

DEMOCRATICALLY YOURS

War on Culture

The governor is doing this in front of cameras and microphones at highly politicized press conferences, and we need to start paying attention. We also can’t forget that DeSantis has established an elections police force to investigate election fraud.

were eligible to vote. That’s because county election officials and voter registration groups told them that they were eligible to vote as part of Florida’s voter rights restoration amendment, a project that a majority of Floridians supported in 2018.

introduce more darkness in our democracy.

If there was ever a time to get off the sidelines, show up to meetings and demand clarity from our leaders, the time is now. Do yourself a favor and google Former Supreme Court Justice David Souter’s speech on civil

IF DEMOCRACY

DIES

IN darkness, we need to pay attention to what our political leaders are doing in the daylight. Gov. Ron DeSantis has launched a culture war to stage a run for president to distinguish himself as an alternative to former President Donald Trump, and Floridians are taking the brunt of his draconian actions.

The governor’s culture war is turning into an outright war on culture itself. The fight aims at racial justice, inclusion, equality, LGBTQ rights and freedom, the public education system, voting rights and public health. The impacts of his policy decisions have reverberating effects.

DeSantis’ quest to make the great state of Florida the freest state in the union has focused his attacks on these areas, which is bad for Florida and, if he is successful, will lead to bad outcomes for America. He unveiled his Stop Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees Act, better known as Stop W.O.K.E. Act, in 2022, and the results have been nothing short of wrong for students, employees and employers across Florida.

The W.O.K.E. Act aims to prohibit public schools, institutions of higher education and private enterprises from teaching anything that could cause anyone to “feel guilt, anguish or any form of psychological distress” due to their race, color, sex or national origin.”

The broad nature of the law and ambiguity has produced a chilling effect across the state. I ask

DeSantis also signed the Parental Rights in Education bill, also known as the “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” bill, which was designed to focus on the state’s youngest students, but the impacts can be felt at all levels in the public schools. Its growing and silencing effect is being felt by students and teachers alike, resulting in serious harm, particularly for LGBTQ youth.

As the country starts maneuvering out of pandemic posturing, DeSantis has introduced destructive policies related to public health, including creating the Public Health Integrity Committee. The committee includes several firebrand anti-vax COVID deniers under the guise of being scientists. Further, DeSantis is using instruments of the state to impanel a Grand Jury to investigate pharmaceutical companies and government officials who promoted COVID-19 vaccines.

There are disturbing news reports that the Florida High School Athletic Association is weighing a recommendation from an advisory committee to start monitoring the menstrual cycles of female student-athletes. While a determination has not been made, it follows along with the anti-trans agenda of the DeSantis administration.

In a pure abuse of power, the governor dispatched teams of police officers who made highly tactical arrests of mostly Black Floridians accused of violating the state’s elections laws or committing voting fraud. An overwhelming majority of the people targeted, arrested and charged by the election police force believed they

Trump gave us the license to say the quiet things out loud and into a microphone and camera, and we need to start paying attention. The far-right agenda now plays prominently on the Pinellas County School Board and County Commission and, with the help of DeSantis, is using the instruments of government policy to dim the daylight and

ignorance. It will give you the sense of urgency that we all need right now.

Johnny Boykins is a Democratic strategist and organizer in Pinellas County, a husband, bow tie aficionado, amateur chef, and U.S. Coast Guard veteran. He also serves as a Board Member of the Pinellas Democratic Party. Learn more at PinellasDemocrats.org.

The governor’s culture war is turning into an outright war on culture itself … The impacts of his policy decisions have reverberating effects.

Johnny V. Boykins

Visibili-T

ADONIS “AJ” CUEVAS

Ryan Williams-Jent

VISIBILI-T

IS DEDICATED TO

transgender members of our community in Central Florida and Tampa Bay, some you know and many you don’t. It is designed to amplify their voices and detail their experiences in life.

This issue, we check in with Tampa Bay’s Adonis “AJ” Cuevas, a self-described jack of all trades. He currently works for a local bank and several ridesharing and delivery services, ways he tries to give back to others in and outside of the LGBTQ community.

“I just like helping,” Cuevas explains. “I love helping people out in any way that I can. It fills my heart, giving back to the community and volunteering however I can.”

That includes through an LGBTQ resource group at his primary employer, the bank. Cuevas says he often participates in their volunteer initiatives, giving to those in need while working to inform others about the stigma and other issues impacting the community of which he’s a part.

“I’ve spoken about myself, about coming out as trans and just tried to help educate people,” he says. “I love doing that, because I think if we had more people speaking about the

trans and LGBTQ community, it would help them understand us a little bit more.”

That’s also why Cuevas wanted to participate in Visibili-T.

“It’s very important for me,” he says. “A lot of people that I’ve spoken to don’t know what it is to be trans, or how it feels to be trans or anybody that is trans, for that matter. I think it’s really important for us to educate people about ourselves.

“We’re just like anybody else, we’re no different,” he continues. “We may identify with something that they don’t understand or comprehend, but at the end of the day, we are still people and we still have feelings. We don’t want to be treated differently.”

Cuevas is thankful that his family understood that. He says that many of his loved ones knew he was transgender long before he officially came out six years ago.

“I’ve always been passionate about my family,” Cuevas says. “I love spending time with them and it fills my heart with joy that they didn’t reject me and that I’m able to still be a part of their life.”

He acknowledges that too often, that it isn’t the case. It’s

something that impacted his own journey.

“A lot of my family, they had never experienced a trans person and that’s why it was so hard for me to come out to them,” Cuevas explains. “I didn’t know how they were going to react but I’m thankful that they knew I was still the same person inside.”

That’s what he wants more people to understand.

“I wish they would take the time to get to know us before you judge us,” Cuevas says, “and that people would be more open minded to receive things that they don’t know anything about. Before transitioning, I would look in the mirror and it just did not align with what I saw in my head. It did not.

“Every time I was looking at myself before transitioning, I wouldn’t want to see what was in front of me,” he continues. “Now I’m the happiest I’ve been because I can look in the mirror and see who I saw in my head for so long. It all makes complete sense and brings me joy.”

That joy is often attacked, he notes, which he shares to illustrate some of the challenges many in the transgender community face on a regular basis. In recent years he’s been rejected from restrooms aligning with his gender identity and more.

“I still struggle with that,” Cuevas says. “I still feel uncomfortable sometimes and I don’t know if people can understand that unless you’re in our shoes.”

Other forms of discrimination include his interactions with others in public. Cuevas says it’s difficult sometimes just to be kind.

“I’ve have always been friendly, even with kids before transitioning,” he says. “I’ve noticed that after transitioning, I have to be more careful about how I act, even at the grocery store if I say, ‘oh, that’s a cute baby’ or something. It’s weird to deal with that.”

Cuevas chooses happiness anyway, living authentically just the same. He just hopes that joy translates to others.

“I want more peace in the future,” he says. “We’re living in a world that’s rough in and of itself, where something is always happening. I want to see more openness, more acceptance and more love.”

Until that happens, Cuevas will be the change he wants to see.

Interested in being featured in Visibili-T?

Email Editor-in-Chief Jeremy Williams in Central Florida or Managing Editor Ryan Williams-Jent in Tampa Bay.

40, He/Him/His

— BEYONCÉ, ACCEPTING HER GRAMMY AWARD FOR BEST DANCE/ELECTRONICA ALBUM, HER 32ND WIN, MAKING HER THE MOST DECORATED ARTIST IN GRAMMY HISTORY AT THE 65TH ANNUAL AWARD CEREMONY FEB. 5.

RATES OF POVERTY

KIM PETRAS MADE HISTORY AS THE FIRST OPENLY TRANSGENDER PERSON TO WIN A GRAMMY at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards Feb. 5. Petras won the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for her collaboration with Sam Smith on their hit song, “Unholy.” Smith, who identifies as nonbinary, gave Petras the microphone as the duo took the stage to accept their award. Among those who Petras thanked were music icon Madonna, who introduced Smith and Petras’ performance that night, and SOPHIE, a Grammy-nominated transgender DJ who died in a tragic accident in January 2021. While many outlets initially reported that Petras was the first trans person to win a Grammy ever, she is only the first to win while being publicly out as trans. Electronic music pioneer Wendy Carlos won three Grammys in 1970 for her debut album “Switched-On Bach.” Carlos first publicly discussed her gender identity in 1979 during an interview with Playboy magazine.

AMONG LGB TQ PEOPLE IN THE U.S. HAVE DROPPED

STREISAND

BARBRA STREISAND’S VERY LONG AND VERY LONG-AWAITED MEMOIR, a project she has talked about for years, is coming out this fall. Viking, a Penguin Random House imprint, will release “My Name is Barbra” on Nov. 7. Her memoir, fitting for a superstar of the grandest ambitions, is listed at 1,040 pages. “My Name Is Barbra” also is the title of a 1965 Streisand album and television special. The memoir was first announced in 2015, and scheduled for two years later, although it didn’t have a title at the time. A reference to it on her website, posted in 2015, was later pulled.

KAL PENN TO HOST PEN AMERICA LITERARY AWARDS CEREMONY

KAL PENN WILL HOST THIS YEAR’S PEN AMERICA LITERARY AWARDS.

The actor, author and activist will preside over the March 2 ceremony at The Town Hall in Manhattan. Prizes include the $75,000 Jean Stein Award for the best and most innovative book of 2022, the $15,000 PEN/ Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for essay writing and the $10,000 PEN/Hemingway Award for best debut novel. Nominees range from David Sedaris and Jhumpa Lahiri to Imani Perry and U.S. poet laureate Ada Limón. “What an honor to host this night … for an organization known for its far-reaching work defending literature against those threatened by its power,” Penn said in a statement.

‘KNOCK AT THE CABIN’ KNOCKS OFF ‘AVATAR’ AT THE BOX OFFICE

AFTER SEVEN WEEKS AS THE TOP FILM IN THEATERS, “AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER” was finally knocked out of the No. 1 spot by the M. Night Shyamalan thriller “Knock at the Cabin.” The film, a home invasion horror flick with an apocalyptic riff, dethroned James Cameron’s 3-D sci-fi epic with $14.1 million in domestic ticket sales. The Universal Pictures release stars

Jonathan Groff and Ben Aldridge as a couple vacationing in a rural cabin with their young daughter who are attacked by four strangers. “Knock at the Cabin” marks Shyamalan’s seventh film as director to open No. 1.

SINCE THE ONSET OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC WITH 17% OF LGBTQ PEOPLE LIVING IN POVERTY IN 2021, DOWN FROM 23% IN 2020.

I’d like to thank the queer community for your love and for inventing this genre.

MEMOIR

‘MY NAME IS BARBRA’ COMING NOV. 7

KIM PETRAS MAKES HISTORY AS THE FIRST OUT TRANS PERSON TO WIN A GRAMMY AWARD

RED ALERT

LGBTQ advocates prepare for Florida’s 2023 legislative session

Ryan Williams-Jent

IN MARCH 2022, REPUBLICANS IN

the Florida Legislature – then with a 24-15 majority in the state Senate and a 78-40 majority in the state House – passed House Bill 1557, Parental Rights in Education. A staunch supporter, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed it into law that month.

More widely known as “Don’t Say Gay or Trans,” the measure went into effect last July to limit the discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools across the state. It’s faced multiple legal challenges in the time since, some ongoing, and

drawn widespread condemnation from LGBTQ advocates worldwide.

Its impact on LGBTQ Floridians was also noted by the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law, the nation’s leading research center on LGBTQ issues. For nearly two decades, the organization has worked to ensure data and facts,

not stereotypes, inform the laws, policies and judicial decisions impacting the entire community.

Researchers released their findings on the matter Jan. 24, revealing that more than half of the parents they surveyed had considered leaving Florida in response to the law. Nearly a quarter of them had already taken steps to do so, with one in four reporting they had experienced anti-LGBTQ harassment since it was passed.

“Don’t Say Gay or Trans” was just one of the laws the legislature passed in 2022 that impacted LGBTQ Floridians. The effects of others — like the state’s 15-week abortion ban and the “Stop W.O.K.E. Act,” which

ILLUSTRATION BY KYLER MILLS (KY VIAN)

seeks to regulate how schools and businesses address topics like race and gender — are still being explored while facing legal challenges of their own.

Equality Florida, the state’s largest LGBTQ-focused civil rights organization, summarized the 2022 legislative session as “grueling” after it came to a close.

“Florida’s 60-day legislative session has come to an end, with Republican lawmakers focused on red meat, culture war legislation to appease their far-right base,” the organization shared last March. “Instead of addressing the skyrocketing housing costs, access to affordable health care, stagnant wages, or the urgency of climate change, they divided Floridians like never before.

“From attacks on LGBTQ and immigrant children, to our freedom of speech and right to vote, we saw a legislative session that targeted our most vulnerable communities and most cherished values,” they concluded. “Governor Ron DeSantis used this legislative session — and consequently Floridian’s lives — as a springboard for his national political ambitions.”

DeSantis has long been rumored to seek the presidency in 2024. The organization and others had hoped the 2022 midterm election would offer a reprieve from his agenda in November, but Republicans gained a veto-proof supermajority in both state legislative chambers

instead. Florida’s “Red Wave” stood in stark contrast to most of the country, which saw Democrats expand their legislative pull nationwide.

This year, the Florida Legislature will enter its regular 2023 session — scheduled to begin March 7 and end May 5 — with a majority of 28-12 in the Senate and 85-35 majority in the House. Republicans also cemented their decades-long control of Florida with the re-election of DeSantis. The governor won a second term with nearly 60%

Representatives after each Census. That process began after 2020’s with the Republican-controlled legislature in Jan. 2022.

According to the nonprofit newsroom ProPublica, which investigates abuses of power, the body redrew congressional maps that left the “GOP with only a modest electoral advantage.” The outlet reported that “DeSantis threw out the legislature’s work and redrew Florida’s congressional districts, making them far more favorable to Republicans.”

transgender health care and college education.

This year alone, the DeSantis administration has moved to revoke the liquor license of a venue which hosted “A Drag Queen Christmas,” surveyed state colleges about students seeking gender dysphoria treatments and rejected a proposed African American studies course for, among other reasons, including “Black Queer Studies.”

Each instance pre-dated the state legislature’s special session Feb. 3, when lawmakers

explains. “The LGBTQ+ community and their allies fought for years to be treated with fairness, dignity and respect and right now there’s a push to take away those hard-won rights.

“Whether the governor is attacking AP African American history, access to reproductive health care or the LGBTQ+ community, we must learn to approach these challenges as a true coalition, because to attack one of us is to attack all of us,” Driskell continues. “And we will be stronger together in pushing back against hurtful, hateful policies and in building a Florida that is inclusive of all.”

State Rep. Anna Eskamani agrees. The Orlando-based advocate proudly calls herself an LGBTQ accomplice and says Democrats are “preparing for battle.”

of the vote.

“Florida didn’t realize the pro-equality wins that swept much of the country,” Equality Florida Public Policy Director Jon Harris Maurer reflects. “We made important advances in key school districts, but we also lost some true champions, in part because of the difficulties of a redistricting process dominated by anti-LGBTQ interests.”

The Florida Legislature is tasked with redrawing the districts voters use to elect state representatives, state senators and members of the U.S. House of

The governor has publicly denied partisan politics impacted the redistricting process, though the matter has been challenged in court. Even with all that in mind, however, Maurer says “we must remind ourselves that historically our biggest breakthroughs have always come on the other side of our biggest challenges.”

LGBTQ advocates say those challenges are happening now. Among other things, they point toward the DeSantis administration’s ongoing attacks on drag entertainment,

convened to address Florida’s takeover of Walt Disney World’s self-governing district in Orange County. DeSantis signed legislation last year to dissolve the company’s 55-year-old government for its public opposition to “Don’t Say Gay or Trans.”

Rep. Fentrice Driskell, an LGBTQ ally who represents Tampa and serves as the Democratic Minority Leader in the state House, says it’s time for Floridians to be concerned.

“These are scary times, with dangerous rhetoric being used by those who want to divide us,” she

“Right now, Governor DeSantis is attacking every marginalized group there is,” she says. “He’s trying to cancel drag shows while attacking our LGBTQ+ youth and banning gender affirming care. He wants to ban abortion, and pass permitless carry, making it easier to carry a firearm without any license.

“He’s going after academic freedom and privatizing our public schools while banning books,” Eskamani continues.

“There are so many communities and issues to champion, and we’re doing what we can to hold the line and fight back.”

The Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus sees that. The organization represents the interests of LGBTQ Floridians

HANDS OFF: State Rep. Anna Eskamani marches in downtown Orlando Jan. 21 for the “Bigger Than Roe Orlando” rally at City Hall, commemorating what would have been the 50-year mark of Roe v. Wade. PHOTO BY JEREMY WILLIAMS

SPEAKING OUT: House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell takes a stance against Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” in Feb. 2022. PHOTO VIA DRISKELL’S FACEBOOK

Staying engaged is critically important … The first brick wasn’t thrown at Stonewall because people thought that LGBTQ equality would be achieved that day, that month or that year. We’re in for a long fight for our humanity.

— EQUALITY FLORIDA PUBLIC POLICY DIRECTOR JON HARRIS MAURER

to the Florida Democratic Party, with chapters across 25 counties including Citrus, Hillsborough, Orange, Polk, Pinellas and Sarasota.

Looking back on 2022, LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus President Stephen Gaskill says the organization’s takeaways are easily assessed.

“The lack of leadership from the [Florida Democratic Party] really fueled a downward spiral in the turnout of the election, because there was no money to focus on registrations or to do the grassroots work that really turns people out,” he explains. “If people are excited about that, even if they’re not excited about the candidates, they’ll still turn out. We just didn’t have that at all last year.”

Gaskill believes there’s a reckoning in the party, a response to significant losses in the midterm. FDP will elect new leadership this month following the January resignation of Manny Diaz, its former chair.

“We have to decide where we go and how we remain relevant,” Gaskill explains. “We know that the DeSantis message last year only played in Florida. We were the only state that took a step to the right; every other state took a step to the left. I think that’s a problem for DeSantis moving forward with his presidential campaign, but it says a lot about the work we need to do in Florida.”

The caucus will hold its 2023 Winter Conference in Orlando with that in mind Feb. 24-26.

Themed “Rise Up,” sessions and speakers “will point the way for

our party and our community and outline the challenges facing us in the upcoming legislative session.”

“We’re about as low as we can go right now as a party here in Florida,” Gaskill says. “So we’re going to look at how we Rise Up and help rebuild our messaging.”

Each candidate for FDP chair, one of whom will be elected that weekend, will address their plans for the party. Sessions will focus on hate crimes, education, transgender rights and other subjects, including a detailed look at the 2023 legislative session.

Gaskill says it’s bluntly called “How Much Worse Can It Get?”

“The hard reality is that it’s going to get worse before it gets better,” he explains. “The Republicans can completely disregard the Democrats in the chamber — and they will, but this allows us to take a harder line our messaging and with our tactics.

“I think that we need to see more direct action in organizing, in demonstrating and speaking out and I’m hopeful that will play a part in that along with our along with other organizations,” Gaskill continues. “Because when the issues are laid out for Floridians, they really are with us.”

Equality Florida’s Maurer concurs. “When people get the full picture of what’s going on, they see the political theater in Tallahassee for what it is and they won’t stand for it,” he explains.

“The international outcry over the ‘Don’t Say LGBTQ’ bill and the thousands of students walking out around the state in protest proved that.

“Governor DeSantis has shown a willingness to wield age-old, anti-LGBTQ tropes, torment marginalized communities and bend the power of state government to fuel his political ambitions,” he continues. “The 2022 legislative session was reduced to little more than one long DeSantis campaign rally by the governor and his allies.”

Ahead of the regular 2023 session, Equality Florida is monitoring what the organization calls the governor’s “anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and censorship agenda.”

“He continues to stake his 2024 presidential hopes on the backs of the most at-risk Floridians, like transgender youth and Medicaid recipients,” Maurer explains. “The fights to keep books in the classroom and to keep healthcare accessible will continue, and we’ll be there every step of the way.”

Driskell promises Florida House Democrats will do the same, and they already have. She and fellow Tampa Bay lawmaker Rep. Michele Rayner — the first Black, openly LGBTQ woman ever elected to the Florida Legislature — spoke out at the Florida Capitol Jan. 25 during a “Stop the Black Attack” rally.

The gathering was a response to Florida’s rejection of the African American History course and more. The community-centered organization Equal Ground, which exists to empower and engage the electorate, said the leaders came together to demand DeSantis “stop attacks on Black Floridians, transgender youth, abortion care, education, learning, immigrants and voting rights.”

“It seems like every year there’s a new enemy for Ronald DeSantis,” Rayner shared in Tallahassee. “Black folks, LGBTQ folks, people who are pregnant, universities … actions have shown time and time again that he targets our most vulnerable.

“Republicans will tell you they love kids, and their fight for freedom is for our children,” she continued. “But if they care about our kids, why are we almost dead last in the nation for quality education? … You cannot say you are here to serve all the children of Florida, especially our children, but only when it serves your political ambitions.”

“In the Florida House Democratic Caucus, we hit the ground running,” Driskell says. “Our caucus is full of amazing and dynamic voices that reflect this diverse state, and we are building something special. Heading into regular session, we are prepared to be the loyal opposition and to fight for every Floridians’ freedom to be healthy, prosperous and safe.

“That means fighting against the governor’s culture wars and for kitchen table economic issues that matter most to Floridians,” she stresses. “This includes lower health care costs, housing affordability and lower property insurance rates.”

Eskamani adds that “Floridians don’t clearly understand what is at risk as many folks just did not vote. We need to work 24/7 to build efficacy within our communities and support everyday people in understanding that the personal is political.”

LGBTQ advocates and organizations acknowledge that the forthcoming session will have wins and losses, but above all they’re calling on LGBTQ and ally Floridians to stay involved.

“Your state government is just that: yours, and it impacts your day-to-day life constantly,” Driskell urges. “Stay engaged, active and vocal.

“Honestly, there will be many culture wars this session, and the impact will be bad,” she notes. “Elections have consequences and right now, the Democrats are a small minority in Florida’s state government. You must work year-round to make sure your voice is heard and that your seat at the table isn’t taken away.”

“Staying engaged is critically important at this pivotal moment,” Maurer also notes. “The first brick wasn’t thrown at Stonewall because people thought that LGBTQ equality would be achieved that day, that month or that year. We’re in for a long fight for our humanity.

“We have succeeded in even more hostile climates,” he concludes, “and we’re better resourced and have more allies now than ever before. That doesn’t mean it’ll be easy, but a Florida where every student is protected and every family is respected will always be worth fighting for.”

Governor DeSantis’ office did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Learn more about Equality Florida’s fight for LGBTQ Floridians before, during and after the 2023 legislative session at EQFL.org and about the Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus and its upcoming conference at LGBTQDems.org.

TAKING ACTION: Equality Florida staff and supporters assemble at Florida’s Capitol during the 2022 Session for Lobby Days, designed “to fight against the DeSantis censorship and surveillance state.” PHOTO VIA EQUALITY FLORIDA’S FACEBOOK

COMING TOGETHER: LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus President Stephen Gaskill at the organization’s 2022 Winter Conference. PHOTO VIA THE CAUCUS’ FACEBOOK

Breaking Through

‘In McClintock’s Corn’ makes its world debut in Tampa

Deborah Bostock-Kelley

ON STAGE AT POWERSTORIES

Theatre Feb. 24-March 12, with global live streams on March 4 and 11, is the true story of the life of neurodivergent, gender- nonconforming Nobel-prize-winning geneticist Dr. Barbara McClintock.

A world debut written by Carolyn Gage, “In McClintock’s Corn” is set entirely in a cornfield. It examines Dr. McClintock’s work in maize genetics and her relationship with her companion and partner Harriet Creighton. It tells the story of McClintock’s revolutionary quest to understand diversity in nature and to reframe “deviance” as an expression of natural variance.

Gage is a neurodivergent playwright, performer, director and activist. The author of several collections of lesbian and feminist-themed plays, over 70 plays, musicals and one-woman shows, she specializes in non-traditional roles for women,

especially those reclaiming famous lesbians whose stories have been distorted or erased from history.

“When our theatre was dark in 2021, we established the Voices of Women Theatre Festival, and Carolyn Gage’s play ‘In McClintock’s Corn’ was selected for the festival, then virtually, and now to brighten our main stage,” says Powerstories Theatre founder Fran Powers. “Unfortunately, the themes in the 1920’s are still so prevalent today.

“Using the playwright’s words, ‘this play is about the physical land that women and minorities are and are not allowed to occupy,’” she continues. “In addition to hearing the audience’s responses, I am excited to see the magic of theatre as our technical design team turns our stage into a cornfield.”

In 2022, “In McClintock’s Corn” was a National Finalist for the Jane Chambers Award, sponsored by the Women in Theatre Program of the Association of Theatre in Higher Education. Nearly 100 years prior, McClintock received her BSC in botany at Cornell University’s College of Agriculture, an MS two years later and a Ph.D. in 1927.

After completing her Ph.D., she continued her work in cytology and genetics. She accomplished incredible advances in her field that have become molecular biology and genetics staples.

“She started her career in the 20s at Cornell, and women were not allowed to get research jobs or teaching jobs above the lowest level of associate or full professorships,” Gage explains. “She faced discrimination throughout her life. She said at one point, ‘I can’t compete with the men. And so I don’t try.’ She just went her own way.”

In her field, McClintock “didn’t try to elbow her way to the table,” she continues. “She realized she could spend massive amounts of time doing what she didn’t do well: schmoozing, trying to go to conferences, figuring out who’s got the power and how she can get them to like her. She knew she was no good at that because neurodivergents don’t read social cues well.”

Gage says that instead, McClintock focused on her work. She describes the geneticist’s actions as simple and concise.

“There’s a whole lot of loss and sadness in that, and it’s not just women; it’s people of color, people with disabilities, lesbians, etc,” she explains. “I love that in the microcosm of one person’s life, she’s echoing the enormous macrocosm of these cosmic-sized studies that she was doing.”

Gage discovered McClintock’s story through a feminist biography by author Evelyn Fox Keller called “A Feeling for the Organism.” She was captivated by the strength of the geneticist’s triumphs in a male-dominated field.

“I think a part of her mission was a deep sense of ‘I don’t see anybody like me, but I believe that the way I am is not a mistake or something I need to fix or hide,’” Gage says “She tracked life and how genetic mutations and diversity issues strengthen the gene pool and assure the species’ survival. And now she is pretty universally accepted as having been on the autism spectrum.”

Nicole Jeannine Smith plays McClintock and Taylor Elise Belew plays Harriet. Rounding out the play’s cast are Newt Rametta as Margaret/Carl, Bianca Borge as Hannah/Hellen/Jim

and Angelina Martinez as Doris/ Martha/Phyllis. The production is directed by Ami Sallee.

“When I read the play, I saw three storylines,” she explains her vision for the piece. “There’s the science, civil rights – women’s lib fights she has to go through – and the love story. Because she lives on the spectrum, she and Harriet redefine what their relationship is and how to love.”

Sallee says that “like the corn, Barbara does not have an arc.”

The director describes her as a constant within the piece, noting that society “has to have the arc to catch up to her.”

“It’s not that she comes around to what society wants. Society finally comes around to what she’s always known and stood for,” she says. “Harriet, costume-wise, will help us tell the passage and an era of time, as she tends to fit into society a little more than Barbara.”

The team says the piece can resonate with LGBTQ audiences for a number of reasons.

“Barbara was trying to reframe the fact that when things deviate from the norm — homosexuals were what society called deviants — it’s the natural variant and not the work of the devil,” Sallee says. “The human experience is happening simultaneously as she’s discovering what she’s discovering with the corn. It was as though life was imitating art — if you replaced art with her science.”

The director calls McClintock a scientific pioneer. “She had an idea beyond what man — human man and gender man

— could comprehend. She was unwavering in her understanding of the truth and sacrificed for it because she believed so strongly.”

As for Gage, the playwright is excited to share McClintock’s story.

“I want people to know about this woman, her work and her relationship with Harriet, one of the few people who understood her work,” she says. “I want to lift up that friendship and lift up same-sex intimacy.”

It was during the course of writing the play that Gage discovered she was on the autism spectrum herself, she notes.

“I finished the play before I understood she was autistic,” she explains. “And the year I finished it, I also was diagnosed as autistic. And I’m like, ‘well, that’s no wonder: her life made so much sense to me.’ So I wanted to put autism kind of front and center and show what it looks like to do intimacy when one partner is neurotypical, and the other partner is autistic. It’s a different trajectory.”

In other words, the two don’t fall in love, resolve a conflict and live happily ever after in a house with a white picket fence.

Instead, Gage says, “When they realized their differences were so extreme, they didn’t throw the friendship out. They said, ‘OK, this template — the

person who sees who you are and is always there is absolutely key.”

According to Gage, McClintock beat the odds with her work. She was called outdated and old-fashioned, but “she just kept working — and then suddenly, the world came to its knees and gave her the Nobel Prize.”

Sallee adds that “In McClintock’s Corn” is a female story she’s grateful is not told through another male gaze. She says “we are in such a post-truth place, I want the story of this play to help us understand that every single one of us has our own variation and no particular pattern is the right pattern.”

picket fence thing isn’t going to work for us — but I love you dearly, you love me dearly and I can track your work.’”

She says they found a way.

“They customized their intimacy to accommodate the fact that one was neurotypical and one was from the spectrum,” Gage notes. “It’s a remarkable love story that crosses five decades. I don’t believe anything in Barbara’s life would have been the same if it hadn’t been for Harriet Creighton. Having just one

As for Gage’s hopes, it’s that “people will start looking at us through a different lens, like that person might be incredibly valuable the way that person is. Maybe I need to change; maybe they don’t. Maybe the culture needs to change.” The play is one part of that.

“In McClintock’s Corn” plays Feb. 23-March 12 at Powerstories Theatre, located at 2105 W. Kennedy Blvd. It will also stream live March 4 and 11. Tickets are $30 for adults and $25 for students, seniors and the military. Showtimes are Thursdays-Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit Powerstories.com/ In-McClintocks-corn.

POWER STORY: (L-R) “In McClintock’s Corn” Director Ami Sallee with cast Newt Rametta Taylor, Elise Belew, Nicole Jeannine Smith, Angelina Martinez, Bianca Borge and Stage Stage Manager Allison. PHOTOS BY DEBORAH BOSTOCK-KELLEY

BACK ON STAGE:

Chris Moux (R) with Luana Fugulin and Edwin Perez in Valencia College’s “Angels in America, Part One: Millennium Approaches” production last year. PHOTO FROM KABELPHOTO.COM

Part Two

to

have to know the ins and outs of Part One to understand Part Two.

“They’re all in search of something, and some of them don’t even know what it is yet,” Seghers says. “Part Two is like the revelation for all the characters after Part One. It’s about finding things out and searching for things that have been bothering the characters for a long time and finally getting a resolution.”

Part One has very distinct storylines while Part Two jumbles them all up as characters start to interact with others and conversate with them in dreams.

Seghers points out that the play as a whole is titled “Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes,” meaning this isn’t a realistic play. Spirits and ghosts make frequent appearances, and Ethel Rosenberg, who was sentenced to death in real life, comes back to haunt Cohn as he is dying of AIDS.

“This kind of creates a world outside of our own, it’s a version of Heaven that looks like San Francisco,” Seghers says.

Shane Watson

NEARLY ONE

YEAR TO THE DAY AFTER

the hit play “Angels in America, Part One: Millennium Approaches” came to Valencia College, director Jeremy Seghers is preparing to put part two on stage.

The first part of the award-winning play premiered at Valencia College’s East Campus theater Feb. 18, 2022, with “Angels in America, Part Two: Perestroika” set to premiere with the same cast Feb. 17.

As a whole, “Angels in America” was first released in 1991 and acted as a symbolic examination of AIDS and homosexuality in America during the 1980s. The play won a Pulitzer Prize for Drama and John M. Clum, playwright and professor of theater studies, said it was a “turning point in the history of gay drama, the history of American drama and of American literacy culture.”

Part One begins with Louis Ironson leaving his partner, Prior

Walter, after he is unable to cope with the fact that Prior has been diagnosed with AIDS. Audiences then meet Joe and Harper Pitt; Joe is a closeted gay man secretly having an affair with Louis and is also working under the infamous lawyer Roy Cohn. After Joe confesses his homosexuality, his wife Harper refuses to face her failing marriage and turns to Valium to escape in hallucinatory fantasies. Meanwhile, Prior is visited by a pair of ghosts who claim he is a divine prophet, and at the very end of Part One, an angel crashes through his bedroom ceiling and tells him that “The Great Work” has begun. While the three-hour play sounds hefty, Seghers says audiences don’t

working on this story again with the same cast he grew close to.

“I said if I got to do it again, it’s got to have the same cast. They are all absolutely perfect for the roles that they play, I got lucky,” Seghers says. “I was very fortunate that the right people came out [to audition] at the right time.”

Moux, who is the youngest in the cast, says the year gap allowed him to mature. Moux refers to the play as a “mature beast” and while he has performed in other shows, he says the additional acting experience hasn’t prepared him in the same way his life experiences have.

Seghers adds the character Louis is typically a hard role to play considering that playwright, Tony Kushner, confides himself in Louis. He often gets stuck in his own head and then it suddenly all comes out like word vomit.

“I would describe [Louis] as a clinical overthinker, if there’s someone you know that overthinks, Louis does it more and truthfully I do the same thing,” Moux says. “If I was in that same situation that Louis is in, having a lover who gets AIDS and the fear during this terrible sickness, in a lot of ways I relate to that.”

Since the early days of the AIDS epidemic, there have been advancements made in finding treatments but it is still a huge issue in today’s world.

With almost a full year since the last play, there have been some challenges and concerns when directing Part Two. Seghers’ main concern was the success of the Part One because that would determine the production status of Part Two. Spoiler Alert: it was successful and got a positive review from the Orlando Sentinel.

“There’s the thought of like ‘Was I just lucky the first time?’” Seghers said. “Like can I actually do this? Can I recreate this again? There’s all this imposter syndrome stuff.”

Actor Chris Moux, who plays Louis, says the hardest challenge for him was connecting to the character and his cast mates again.

“Diving back into that vulnerability and getting that ability to sacrifice all of yourself has been the hardest part,” Moux says. “Everyone in the cast had to give up a lot of themselves physically and emotionally in really intense ways.”

Through all the doubts and bumps in the road, Seghers is glad to be

HIV research was halted during the peak of COVID-19, as medical researchers began to focus their attention and money on creating a vaccine for the coronavirus. HIV data collected by the CDC suggest there was a large decline in testing and in 2020 there were 670,000 fewer HIV screenings than in 2019.

“I started looking back at the generation before me and realized I didn’t have any mentors,” Seghers says. “A whole generation of gay men were wiped out, and to me it was really important to pass that along to another generation and look at the legacy of where we came from.”

Seghers adds that this is the reason he tried to cast as many queer actors as he could.

“It’s like a right of passage to tell the story now, so that we don’t forget the generation that is no longer with us,” he says.

“Angels in America, Part Two: Perestroika” plays at the Valencia College East Campus Black Box Theater Feb 17-25. Tickets cost $12 for general admission, and $10 for students, faculty, alumni and seniors. Tickets will be available at ValenciaCollege.edu/arts.

‘Angels in America’ returns

Valencia College with ‘Perestroika’

Lee Cohen and Ali Ribe from Orlando

ENGAGEMENT

DATE:

Nov. 28, 2020

WEDDING DATE:

Dec. 10, 2022

OFFICIANT: Ivy LesVixen

VENUE: The Acre Orlando

COLORS: Charcoal, Gold, Plum, Black, Sage

WEDDING SONG /ARTIST:

“The Avatar’s Love” from “Avatar: The Last Airbender”

FLORIST: Woodbine Everlasting on Etsy

CATERER: Pizza Bruno

CAKE FLAVORS: N/A

BAKERY: Kelly’s Homemade Ice Cream

PHOTOGRAPHER/ VIDEOGRAPHER: Kailey Shea/ Ivan Vargas

Lora Korpar

WHEN LEE COHEN AND ALI

Ribe first locked eyes in a crowded club four years ago, they knew they had found someone special.

Upon seeing each other, Ali smiled at Lee and Lee was captivated by the “pure joy and happiness in her eyes.”

“I knew then she must be a kind, good, loving soul, and she is,” Lee says. “For me, she noticed I wasn’t afraid to be a goofball the second we started dancing together.”

The two danced the night away, laughing as they did what Lee called a “really cheesy spinning move” to a Lady Gaga song.

“Then we both started headbanging to ‘Mr. Brightside,’ and that was it for me,” Lee added.

They shared their first kiss four hours after

first locking eyes. Eight months after that, they said “I love you” to each other for the first time at Come Out With Pride.

“It happened very naturally,” Lee says. “We were at pride, and I said something that made her laugh and she just said ‘I love you.’ It was a huge relief to me because I was trying to work up the nerve to say it all day, but she beat me to it.”

The pair were engaged two years later, in November 2020. Lee proposed to Ali at the Enzian Theater’s garden. It was a small, quiet and intimate event. They talked about the

proposal extensively before it happened, so Ali knew it was coming.

“I value her opinion in everything, and I know she really does not like public attention, so I asked where and how she wanted it to happen,” Lee says. “It was low-key and very quintessentially ‘us.’”

The Enzian was a special place for Lee and Ali because some of their favorite first dates took place there. They strolled through the garden before Lee popped the question. Then they celebrated their engagement by getting tipsy on champagne and watching “Ammonite.”

The couple married two years after their engagement at The Acre Orlando. One of Lee’s most special moments from the day was between the ceremony and the reception, when the two had

a moment to themselves to process that they were married.

“After the ceremony and mad rush for golden hour portraits, we made sure to have a few minutes alone where we could just be together and revel in our day and our new life together before going out to the reception,” Lee said.

Having “overwhelming love from all of our family and friends in one place” was the best part of the wedding day, according to Lee. Family and friend moments were also the highlights of the reception.

Lee and Ali both danced with their parents, which meant a lot to each of them. Lee also enjoyed when their little cousin took over as MC once the truck from Kelly’s Homemade Ice Cream arrived.

“All of our friends scream-singing ‘Montero’ by Lil Nas X [was another fun moment],” Lee added.

Even their dog Ivy Bean was involved in the wedding, though Lee called her “the worst flower girl in the world.” Ali’s person of honor, Alex Traum, also gave a speech that became a highlight of the night for the couple.

“She was there the night we met and has watched us grow in life and love together and [the speech] made us both tear up,” Lee says.

It was an unforgettable day for Ali, Lee and their loved ones that they will take into their future as a married couple.

“As silly as it sounds, every day together is special,” Lee says. “We’re there with love and support in all of each other’s highs and lows, and that means everything.”

announcements TAMPA BAY OUT+ABOUT

CONGRATULATIONS

Pasco Pride returned Feb. 4 at Heritage Park in Land O’Lakes. Read more at WatermarkOnline.com.

Florida Entertainer of the Year was held at the Ritz Ybor Feb. 5, crowning local entertainer Kenya M. Black Twila Holiday and Jay Miah won first and second runners-up. Read more on p. 10 and view a full gallery of photos at WatermarkOnline.com.

Empath Partners in Care announced Feb. 8 that the organization had received its donation of $150,985.46 from The SMART Ride. “We were honored to be a beneficiary of the 2022 SMART Ride and the funds raised will benefit the Tampa Bay community so we can provide more education and prevention services as well as ensure our HIV+ community members have what they need to live healthy lives,” EPIC Executive Director Joy Winheim said in a statement. Read more at WatermarkOnline.com.

Metro Inclusive Health announced Feb. 9 that CEO Lorraine Langlois will retire Dec. 31. Read more on p. 10.

SUPPORT GROUP

Just Be Rooted has announced a new Trans+ Youth Social Support Group for those 12-18 years old. “This space will be for individuals to find a safe space to build community & experience joy, while also processing any emotions surrounding current events,” host Kayden Rodriguez shared. Email Kayden@RemedyInHarmony.com for registration and location information.

LOCAL BIRTHDAYS

Hillsborough County LGBTQ Democratic Caucus Secretary

Dave Cutler, Tampa activist Chris Goldsmith, Seminole

Hard Rock Supervisor Brian Bloomfield, Tampa Bay

activist Prin Ocea (Feb. 16); Tampa Bay entertainer

Iman, Tampa Bay entertainer Monique Love, Semi Sweet

Designs co-owners Mike and Billy Tamplin (Feb. 17); Tampa’s Xtreme Total Health and Wellness consultant Ty Williams; Stonewall Pinellas Democrat Rick Boylan, St. Petersburg artist Jay Hoff (Feb. 19); Watermark husband

Wade Williams-Jent, Tampa model and web site recruiter

Michael Vought, Tampa Bay leather entrepreneur Billy Seablom, Lighthouse Credit Foundation founder David Crow, Sarasota realtor Michael Grady (Feb. 20); Tampa

Bay entertainer Jade Embers Cohen, Tampa Bay entertainer

LaDiamond Haze (Feb. 21); Tampa consultant Bart Nagy,

TIGLFF superstar Renee Cossette, St Pete Pride Treasurer

Stanley Solomons, Graphi-ko Gallery owner Wilmer E.

Vergara Homez, Atlas Body + Home owner Tony Loeffler (Feb. 22); Sunrise Body Revival Chiropractic’s Dr. Travis

France, Holiday Visions decorator Sean Reynolds-Steele (Feb. 23); Tampa hairstylist Christopher Nejman, FabStayz

Founder Robert Geller, Tampa Bay activist Janice Carney, First Home Bank manager Bob Sanders (Feb. 25); Ballard

Managing Partner and Tampa First Lady Ana Cruz (Feb. 26); Tampa softballer Carlos Lopez, Sarasota Ballet

marketing manager Mike Marraccini, Tampa massage

therapist Eduardo Campos, St. Pete socialite James Brink (Feb. 27); Polk Pride’s Scott Guira, Rome Venture founder Tomas Carlucci (Feb. 28); Watermark contributor Abby Baker (March 1).

1

SPARTAN STOP: President Joe Biden delivers an address at the University of Tampa Feb.

9. PHOTO FROM UNIVERSITY OF TAMPA’S FACEBOOK

2

DANCING DIVA: Lady Janet takes the stage by storm at Enigma for Queens on Central Feb. 10.

PHOTO BY RYAN WILLIAMS-JENT

3 ON PAR: (L-R) Tabi Deas, Tammy Benjamin, birthday girl Jackie Gill-Foil and Suzanne Cohen celebrate at Par Bar Feb. 4.

PHOTO BY RYAN WILLIAMS-JENT

4 DECADES OF LOVE: Newlyweds Carrie West (L) and Mark Bias West mark 45 years together at their home in Ybor Feb.

3. PHOTO BY DYLAN TODD

5 COMING TOGETHER: Project Pride welcomes supporters to the organization’s donor appreciation party Feb. 4 at Benderson Family Finish Tower.

PHOTO COURTESY PROJECT PRIDE

6

ALL STARS: “RuPaul’s Drag Race” winners Kylie Sonique Love (L) and Trinity the Tuck greet Florida Entertainer of the Year guests at the Ritz Ybor Feb. 5.

PHOTO BY JAMARCUS MOSLEY

7

RACING ON: Hillsborough County candidates gather for the Hillsborough County LGBTQ Democratic Caucus candidate meet and greet Feb. 8 at New World Tampa.

PHOTO FROM THE LGBTQ DEM CAUCUS’ FACEBOOK

8

EQUALITY EVENING: Angelique Young (L) and Mark Puskarich attend Equality Florida’s Council Mixer at the Classic Car Barn in Tampa Feb. 9. PHOTO FROM EQUALITY FLORIDA’S FACEBOOK

announcements CENTRAL FLORIDA OUT+ABOUT

CONGRATULATIONS

Peer Support Space celebrated four years on Feb. 1. BarCodes Orlando celebrates 14 years on March 5.

CONDOLENCES

Tracy Thomas, beloved bartender at Southern Nights Orlando, Sunday Surrender at Ember and more, passed away Feb. 9. She was 51. A message on the website DignityMemorial.com states “Tracy passed peacefully after experiencing medical complications” and that she was “surrounded by family and friends.” “For those who were lucky enough to have met Tracy whether it was Parliament House, Southern Nights Orlando/Revolution, or Ember on Sundays, you know how much of a light this woman was,” wrote her Sunday Surrender at Ember family on Facebook. “The Sunday family, new and old, send out love to her family. Rest easy, friend. You will always be remembered as our amazing fierce mama.”

Family asks that in lieu of flowers, to please donate to a charity of choice in Tracy’s name, listing the Ronald McDonald House in Tampa, a local animal rescue or Orlando Pride as a few examples.

LOCAL BIRTHDAYS

Central Florida performer Blue Star, Orlando man-abouttown Nick Crush, Orlando cover model Diego Larenas (Feb. 16); Downtown Arts District board member Ben Laube, Orlando playwright-actor John Ryan, Disney entertainment guru John Bearse (Feb. 17); Orange County Arts & Cultural Affairs director Terry Olsen, Central Florida performer Evan Fagin (Feb. 18); R.I.S.E. Initiative co-founder and One Orlando Alliance board member

Shea Cutliff (Feb. 19); Central Florida culinary artist

Steven Galan, Owner of Crabtree Healthy Living Toni Crabtree; Orlando realtor Sam Gallaher, Central Florida funeral director Sam Odom (Feb. 20); Orlando educator

John Albritton (Feb. 21); onePULSE Foundation’s Andres

Acosta Ardila, Central Florida performer Heather Abood, Roller girl Jessy “Spikey” Wayles, Orlando photographer/ videographer Savannah Powell, Orlando-based writer

Sarah Kinbar, Entertainment producer and owner of Studio Lot Orlando Beth Wheatley (Feb. 22); Orlando’s singing cowboy cub CiJay Bailey, The Hammered Lamb owner Jason Lambert, Central Florida realtor David Dorman (Feb. 23); Orlando spoken-word activist, artist and photographer Quincy Wilson aka Q Major, Metro City Realty owner Jon Sheehan (Feb. 24); Songbird Megan Monesmith, Geek Easy’s Oral Frier, Orlando graphic designer Lisa Buck, Framing of Central Florida co-owner

Mike Van Der Leest (Feb. 25); Central Florida Community

Arts founder and executive director Joshua Vickery, Former Come Out With Pride board member Matthew Riha (Feb. 26); A/V technician at The Social/Beacham

Peter Smith, Orlando aesthete extraordinaire Jim Cundiff (Feb. 27); Orlando photographer J.D. Casto, Disney Cruise Line’s David Baldree (Feb. 28); Fields Motorcars Orlando’s Russ Fowler (Feb. 29); Drag beauty Chrysanthe Mum (March 1).

1

LOVELY BRUNCH: (L-R) Heather Wilkie, Josh Bell and Angelica Sanchez celebrate love at the Zebra Coalition’s Valentine’s Day Drag Brunch at Quantum Leap Winery in Orlando Feb. 12. PHOTO FROM JOSH BELL’S FACEBOOK

2

PLAY BALL: Addison Taylor (L) and Joel Gran referee the bar for the big game at District Dive in Orlando Feb. 12. PHOTO FROM ADDISON TAYLOR’S FACEBOOK

3

ORLANDO HEARTS: (L-R) Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, City Commissioner Patty Sheehan and Susie Dyer reveal Feb. 2 the hearts they made at Luna Mosaic Arts in Orlando as a part of the Mills/50 District’s Diversity Mural. PHOTO FROM PATTY SHEEHAN’S FACEBOOK

4

CHAMPIONSHIP FAN: Robert Crane cheers on the eventual Super Bowl winners, the Kansas City Chiefs, at Savoy in Orlando Feb. 12. PHOTO FROM ROBERT CRANE’S FACEBOOK

5

IT’S A CARNAVAL: Performers are ready to entertain for Mardi Gras: Flavors of Carnaval at Universal Studios in Orlando Feb. 4. PHOTO BY JHEFF MATHIS

6

SING OUT LOUD: Billy Mick shakes his tail feathers as he entertains at DeLand Pride’s Love is Love Fest at Artisan Alley in DeLand Feb. 4. PHOTO BY LEX SCHATTEN

7

FUN RUN: Paul Falzone (L) and Michele Holbrook attend Cupid’s Undie Run 2023 at Elixir in Orlando Feb. 11. PHOTO BY SHAYNE WATSON

8

DISNEY CLUBS: Grace Peek-Harris is ready for the rich and famous at the entrance to the exclusive Club 33 at Epcot Feb. 11. PHOTO FROM GRACE PEEK-HARRIS’ FACEBOOK

community calendar

CENTRAL FLORIDA

JAN. 14-AUG. 27

ROLLINS MUSEUM OF ART, WINTER PARK

“In Your Eyes” features works highlighting the unique experiences of female, transgender and gender nonconforming artists by addressing issues such as racial and gender identity, sexuality, discrimination and violence. Admission to the museum is free. For more information, visit Rollins.edu.

The Pride Chamber’s March Business Connect and Mixer

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1, 6-8 P.M.

NATIONAL ENTREPRENEUR CENTER, ORLANDO

Join The Pride Chamber for its next monthly networking mixer at the National Entrepreneur Center located inside the Fashion Square Mall. Admission is free for members and $20 for non-members and guests. For more information, go to ThePrideChamber.org.

TAMPA BAY

Miss Last Chance Comedy Queen 2023

SUNDAY, FEB. 19, 7 P.M.

QUENCH LOUNGE, LARGO

V&A Productions present this official preliminary to National Comedy Queen. Performances include Miss National Comedy Queen Mr Ms Adrien and Miss Last Chance Comedy Queen 2022 Ida Carolina. Winner receives $250 cash, crown, sash and entry to Nationals.

40th Annual State of the Chamber Luncheon

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 22, 10:30 A.M. – 1:30 P.M.

BRYAN GLAZER FAMILY JCC, TAMPA

The Tampa Bay LGBT Chamber’s first signature event of the year welcomes over 350 people to a lunchtime celebration marking the organization’s 40th anniversary. The event will also feature the 2022-23 Impact Awards, honoring organizations and individuals making a positive impact throughout Tampa Bay. Learn more and buy tickets at TampaBayLGBTChamber.org.

EVENT PLANNER

SOUTHERN VISIT

ARTS+ENTERTAINMENT

CENTRAL FORIDA

“Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill,” Feb. 8-March 5, Orlando Shakes, Orlando. 407-447-1700; OrlandoShakes.org

“Sordid Lives,” Feb. 16-18, Dr. Phillips Center, Orlando. 844-513-2014; DrPhillipsCenter.org

“RuPaul’s Drag Race” Viewing Party, Feb. 17 & 24, Savoy, Orlando. 407-898-6766; SavoyOrlando.com

Anetra, Feb. 17, Southern Nights, Orlando. 407-412-5039; Facebook.com/ SouthernNightsOrlando

Spark STEM Fest, Feb. 17-20, Orlando Science Center, Orlando. 407-514-2000; OSC.org

OGC presents “Love is… Brunch” Cabaret, Feb. 18, Savoy, Orlando. 407-898-6766; OrlandoGayChorus.org

Jalen Baker, Feb. 18, Timucua Arts Foundation, Orlando. 321-234-3985; Timucua.com

Antoni Porowski, Feb. 21, The Plaza Live, Orlando. 407-228-1220; PlazaLiveOrlando.org

Bungalower Drag Bingo and Music Video

Dance Party, Feb. 21 & 28, Tactical Brewing Co., Orlando. 407-203-3303; Bungalower.com

16th Annual UDC Orlando

Jazz Festival, Feb. 2425, Nicholson School of Communications at University of Central Florida, Orlando. 407-823-2000; Events.UCF.edu

Sarah McLachlin, Feb. 25, Dr. Phillips Center, Orlando. 844-513-2014; DrPhillipsCenter.org

Monster Cabaret!, Feb. 25, Renaissance Theatre Company, Orlando. RenTheatre.com

Drag Brunch – Hip Hop vs. Dance, Feb. 26, Island Time, Orlando. 407-930-2640; IslandTimeOrlando.com

Localtopia 2023, Feb. 18, Williams Park, St. Petersburg. Localtopia. KeepSaintPetesrburgLocal.org

Brunch on Grand Central, Feb. 19; 26, Zoie’s, St. Petersburg. 727-855-6990; ZoiesFL.com

The Castle does Mardi Gras, Feb. 19, The Castle, Ybor. 813-247-7547; CastleYbor.com

“Desert Hearts,” Feb. 19, Green Light Cinema, St. Petersburg. 508-816-8968; TIGLFF.com

“Songs of Hope, Justice and Freedom,” Feb. 19, The Palladium, St. Petersburg. 727-822-3590; MyPalladium.org

LGBTQ+ Coffee Connection, Feb. 20, Hale Senior Activity Center, Dunedin. 727-328-3260; MyEPIC.org

“Chicago,” Feb. 21-26, Straz Center, Tampa. 813-229-7827; StrazCenter.org

Adore Delano, Feb. 27, The Social, Orlando. 407-246-1419; Foundation-Presents.com

“Pretty Woman: The Musical,” Feb. 28-March 5, Dr. Phillips Center, Orlando. 844-513-2014; DrPhillipsCenter.org

TAMPA BAY

“Faslettos,” Through Feb. 19, Straz Center, Tampa. 813-624-2003; MadTheatre.com

“Shear Madness,” Through April 8, Straz Center, Tampa. 813-229-7827; StrazCenter.org

Dine ‘N Drag, Feb. 17; 24, Zoie’s, St. Petersburg. 727-855-6990; ZoiesFL.com

Anetra, Feb. 18, Southern Nights, Tampa. 813-559-8625; Facebook.com/ SouthernNightsTampa

Mardi Gras Drag VFW Fundraiser, Feb. 18, VFW Post 39, St. Petersburg. 410-262-2929; GregAndersonEvents.com

“Tiny Girl Big Show,” Feb. 21, Zubrick Magic Theatre, St. Petersburg. 866-982-7425; ZubrickMagic.com

LGBTQ+ Coffee Connection, Feb. 24, Senior Center, Gulfport. 727-328-3260; MyEPIC.org

Jake Wesley Rogers, Feb. 24, Crowbar, Ybor. 813-241-8600; CrowbarYbor.com

Drag Queen Brunch, Feb. 26, Salty Shamrock, Apollo Beach. 410-262-2929; GregAndersonEvents.com

Drag Queen Bingo, Feb. 28, Creative Grape, St. Petersburg. 727-803-6004; CreativeGrape.com

SARASOTA

“Dreamgirls,” Feb. 22-April 9, Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, Sarasota. 941-366-1505; WestcoastBlackTheatre.org

To submit your upcoming event, concert, performance, or fundraiser visit watermarkonline.com.

“RuPaul’s Drag Race” star Anetra hits up both Southern Nights with a stop at the Orlando club Feb. 17 and a stop at the Tampa club Feb. 18. PHOTO FROM ANETRA’S INSTAGRAM

“In Our Eyes: Women’s, Nonbinary and Transgender Perspectives from the Collection”

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