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Steve Rothaus

Steve Rothaus' Gay South Florida - for and about (but not just) LGBT people

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We’ve moved! Steve Rothaus’ Gay South Florida is now a section on the new MiamiHerald.com

new GSF

Click here for all the latest LGBT stories, photos and videos at Steve Rothaus’ Gay South Florida.

Update your bookmarks. The quick link: www.miamiherald.com/gay

We’re now a full section at the new MiamiHerald.com, including local, national and foreign stories of interest to the LGBT community.

From now on, all Gay South Florida content will be fully visible on any device, including smartphones, tablets and desktops.

Also, you’ll be able to comment directly to Facebook from any story posted to Gay South Florida.

This blog will no longer be updated, but will remain available to quickly find earlier stories.

If you have any questions, contact me at [email protected]

Thanks for visiting!

September 18, 2014 in AIDS and Health, Arts, Bisexual, Books, Bullying, Business, Census, Crime, Current Affairs, Fashion, Film, Florida, Food and Drink, Fort Lauderdale & Broward County, Gay, Immigration, Key West & Monroe County, Lesbian, LGBT, Marriage, Media, Miami & Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, Military, Music, Obituary, Palm Beach County, Pets, Politics, Religion, South Florida, Sports, Television, Theater, Transgender, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs, Wilton Manors, Workplace, Youth | Permalink | Comments (4)

‘I Love Lucy Live On Stage’ celebrates Miami run with free cocktail party at Arsht Center

Euriamis Losada (Ricky), Thea Brooks (Lucy), Lori Hammel (Ethel) and Kev...

 

Caption: Euriamis Losada (Ricky), Thea Brooks (Lucy), Lori Hammel (Ethel) and Kevin Remington (Fred), in I LOVE LUCY® LIVE ON STAGE - Photo by Ed Krieger

BY ABRAHAM GALVAN

[email protected]

Calling all Vitameatavegamin girls. And boys.

I Love Lucy Live On Stage is soon coming to town and to celebrate the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts will host a free community cocktail party 6 to 9 p.m. Friday.

Featured events at the party: performances by Miami Gay Men’s Chorus (each member dressed as Desi Arnaz’s TV alter ego, Ricky Ricardo) and a Lucille Ball/Lucy Ricardo lookalike contest – open to all genders.

“I encourage men to enter the contest also,” said Morgan Stockmayer, promotions manager for the Arsht Center. “I am actually looking forward to seeing them.”


Miami Gay Men’s Chorus will perform two 20-minute sets of their own repertoire, along with musical numbers featured on I Love Lucy, which ran on CBS from 1951 to 1957.Male or female, the contest winner will receive a package including I Love Lucy Live tickets and a pin-up style photo shoot by Terribly Girly Photography’s Janette Valentine. Judges are local fashion experts Gino R. Campodonico of The MANnequin Party, Kalyn James from Fashion Style Miami, and Annie Vasquez of TheFashionPoet.com.

The gay men’s chorus opens and closes the reception. “We do a set really early in the happy hour and then in about an hour or so come back and do another set,” artistic director Anthony Cabrera said.

For the past three months, the chorus has been preparing at its regular rehearsal location, All Souls’ Episcopal Church in Miami Beach.

“We try to perform to the highest caliber because when we go out to perform we give it our all,” chorus member Brandon Stephenson said.

The cocktail party, part of DWNTWN Art Days 2014, will be hosted by 101.5 Lite FM morning personality Julie Guy and showcase classic cars from Dezer Collection Auto Museum and Event Space. Photos and footage from the current HistoryMiami exhibit, American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music, will also be featured.

The signature cocktail of the night will $5 Mojitos, along with other “Tropicana nightclub” drinks.

I Love Lucy Live On Stage runs Sept. 30-Oct. 5 at the Arsht Center, where Miami audience members can imagine themselves as a 1952 I Love Lucy studio audience watching Ball, Arnaz, William Frawley and Vivian Vance perform as Lucy, Ricky, Fred and Ethel.

IF YOU GO

▪ What: ‘I Love Lucy Live On Stage’ Cocktail Hour

▪ When: Friday, Sept. 19

▪ Where: Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts: 1300 Biscayne Blvd, Miami, FL 33132

▪ Cost: Free admission; $5 mojitos and other drinks.

▪ Details: https://www.facebook.com/events/1463657213892490

September 17, 2014 in Arts, Bisexual, Business, Current Affairs, Film, Florida, Food and Drink, Fort Lauderdale & Broward County, Gay, Key West & Monroe County, Lesbian, LGBT, Media, Miami & Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, Politics, Religion, South Florida, Television, Theater, Transgender, Weblogs, Wilton Manors, Workplace, Youth | Permalink | Comments (0)

Facebook gallery | World Outgames Miami 2017 reception - Sept. 16, 2014

2014-09-16 World OutGames Miami 2017 reception 002

World Outgames Miami 2017 host committee members review the accomplishments of the past year and explain what lies ahead in the planning process for World OutGames Miami when the city expects to welcome more than 15,000 participants and spectators from around the world.

Click here to view and tag the photos. Steve Rothaus / Miami Herald Staff.

September 16, 2014 in Bisexual, Business, Current Affairs, Florida, Food and Drink, Fort Lauderdale & Broward County, Gay, Key West & Monroe County, Lesbian, LGBT, Media, Miami & Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, Palm Beach County, Politics, Religion, South Florida, Sports, Transgender, Weblogs, Wilton Manors, Workplace, Youth | Permalink | Comments (0)

Transgender protections come before Miami-Dade commission — again

BY PATRICIA MAZZEI
[email protected]

A pair of Miami-Dade commissioners will attempt for the second time to add transgender protections Tuesday to a county law that bans discrimination in government employment and the delivery of public services.

“This country is evolving in a way where we’re more accepting, so I think this is a good time to bring it back,” Commissioner Audrey Edmonson said.

She and Bruno Barreiro withdrew the legislation last summer when it faced resistance in a key committee made up of five commissioners, some of whom indicated they would oppose expanding the county’s human-rights ordinance.

The difference now: One of those commissioners is on her way out the door.

Lynda Bell lost her reelection bid last month to Daniella Levine Cava, who was elected with the vocal support of SAVE, Miami-Dade’s leading gay-rights group that blamed Bell for the failure of last year’s trans-inclusive amendment. Bell, who received the backing of conservative activists, countered that hers was merely a single vote.

Levine Cava won’t be sworn in until Nov. 18. That means Bell will still be on the dais Tuesday, when Edmonson and Barreiro’s proposal is scheduled for a preliminary vote.

But Levine Cava would be on the board by the time the measure winds through the commission’s legislative process. A final vote would take place in December at the earliest.

That’s assuming the proposal advances Tuesday. It did so last year, with only one commissioner — Bell — voting against.

Edmonson, the chairwoman of the health committee, acknowledged the changing composition of the board in an interview Monday, but also noted a shift in society and popular culture as a reason for resuscitating the proposal now. After withdrawing it last year, she and Barreiro had to wait at least six months, under county rules, before bringing it back.

“It’s something that has to be dealt with,” Barreiro said.

As proposed, the amended law, which is also co-sponsored by Commissioner Sally Heyman, would extend the discrimination ban to “gender identity” and “gender expression.”

It’s already illegal in county government to discriminate against someone — in terms of their public employment, family leave, accommodations, credit and financing, or public housing — on the base of race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, sex, pregnancy, age, disability, marital status, familial status or sexual orientation.

Adding “sexual orientation” to the law was a decades-long political fight recently examined in The Day It Snowed In Miami, a documentary co-produced by the Miami Herald.

But much has changed since voters approved the addition in 2002, passed by the commission in 1998. In 2003, Monroe County and Key West widened their human-rights ordinances to include transgender protections. Miami Beach did the same in 2004, Palm Beach County in 2007 and Broward County in 2008. Last year, Gainesville’s Alachua County passed a similar law.

In June, Miami Beach commissioners voted to provide city employees with transgender health insurance, which would cover treatments such as gender-reassignment surgery and hormone and psychological therapy but not cosmetic procedures.

Opponents organized by the conservative Christian Family Coalition last year claimed the county’s expanded definition would allow people who are not transgender to dress up as the other sex and walk into public restrooms to prey on victims. A flier produced by the group featured a man with beard stubble wearing a blonde wig and leering at a frightened little girl.

Anthony Verdugo, the organization’s executive director, said he doesn’t plan to attend Tuesday’s meeting because he’s out of town. But he continues to oppose the policy, calling it “a solution in search of a problem.”

“It legalizes discrimination, because it gives a reason for employers to fire employees,” Verdugo said. He cited the case of a Macy’s employee in Texas who lost her job in 2011 because the employee said she didn’t allow a transgender customer to use a women’s dressing room.

“There just simply is no evidence for the need for this,” Verdugo said.

Edmonson, however, dismissed that criticism — and the idea that expanding the county’s anti-discrimination law would somehow legalize preying on people in restrooms or other public places.

“That was just a smoke screen,” she said. “We’ve got at least 10 counties already in the state [with similar legislation], and no one’s having that problem.”

IF YOU GO

The Miami-Dade County Commission meets at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at the 2nd floor chambers of the Stephen P. Clark Center, 111 NW 1st St., Miami.

September 15, 2014 in Bisexual, Business, Current Affairs, Florida, Fort Lauderdale & Broward County, Gay, Key West & Monroe County, Lesbian, LGBT, Media, Miami & Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, Palm Beach County, Politics, Religion, South Florida, Transgender, Weblogs, Wilton Manors, Workplace, Youth | Permalink | Comments (0)

World OutGames Miami 2017 to host 2nd annual community reception on Tuesday, Sept. 16

News release from World OutGames 2017:

outgames

MIAMI BEACH – September 11, 2014 – The host committee of World OutGames Miami 2017 will present the 2nd Annual World OutGames Miami Community Reception on Tuesday, September 16, 2014, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., in the B Ballroom, second level, Miami Beach Convention Center. During the reception, members of the host committee will review the accomplishments of the past year and explain what lies ahead in the planning process for World OutGames Miami when the city expects to welcome more than 15,000 participants and spectators from around the world.

The reception is free and open to the public with complimentary hors d’oeuvres and 2-for-1 Happy Hour cocktails. RSVPs are requested to [email protected] by September 15.

In addition to updates from the host committee, civic and community leaders will be on hand to share some special surprises and voice their support of World OutGames Miami. Volunteer and participant opportunities will also be showcased where individuals can join the organizing effort or register to compete in the Games.

In addition to sporting competitions in more than 30 individual sports, World OutGames Miami will feature cultural activities that highlight the local flavor of South Florida and a global Human Rights Conference to discuss issues being faced by the LGBTQI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, intersex) community from around the world.

Dates for World OutGames Miami are May 26 to June 4, 2017 with events taking place at venues throughout Miami Beach and Miami.

The Miami Beach-Miami Sports & Cultural League is the non-profit host organization for World OutGames Miami 2017. World OutGames is licensed by GLISA International (the Gay and Lesbian International Sport Association) and takes place every four years in a different global city. 2017 will mark the first time that the Games have been held in the United States. Previous hosts have been Montreal, Copenhagen and Antwerp.  World OutGames is open to all who wish to participate, without regard to sexual orientation, and all competitions are arranged according to the skill level of the athletes.  Cultural and human rights components make the event a well-rounded experience for athletes and non-athletes alike. For more information on World OutGames Miami 2017, visit www.facebook.com/OutGamesMiami.

World OutGames Miami 2017 is made possible with the support of the Florida Sports Foundation, Greater Miami Convention and Visitor Bureau, City of Miami Beach, and Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority.

September 11, 2014 in Bisexual, Business, Current Affairs, Florida, Food and Drink, Fort Lauderdale & Broward County, Gay, Key West & Monroe County, Lesbian, LGBT, Media, Miami & Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, Politics, Religion, South Florida, Sports, Transgender, Travel, Weblogs, Wilton Manors, Workplace, Youth | Permalink | Comments (0)

Same-sex marriage issue divides Miami Shores; second resolution vote scheduled for Monday night

BY MELHOR MARIE LEONOR
[email protected]

In a city with a large percentage of same-sex households and an openly gay vice mayor, a symbolic resolution supporting same-sex marriage seemed like “something kind of simple” to Miami Shores Councilwoman Ivonne Ledesma.

“But what I found was that that wasn’t the case,” she said.

Whether or not to support gay marriage has split Miami Shores, with proponents flying rainbow flags on their immaculate front lawns and opponents speaking out at Village Hall.

Village leaders originally voted down the nonbinding measure on July 15.

A similar symbolic resolution will come before the council again Monday night, introduced by Mayor Herta Holly, who voted “no” the first time around.

Click here to read more.

September 08, 2014 in Bisexual, Business, Current Affairs, Florida, Fort Lauderdale & Broward County, Gay, Key West & Monroe County, Lesbian, LGBT, Marriage, Media, Miami & Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, Politics, Religion, South Florida, Transgender, Weblogs, Wilton Manors, Workplace, Youth | Permalink | Comments (0)

Gallery | LGBT-rights group SAVE honors six Young Guardians with 2014 Luminary Awards

034
BY ABRAHAM GALVAN
For the Miami Herald

LGBT-rights group SAVE on Friday hosted the second Young Guardians’ Luminary Awards, sponsored by AIDS Healthcare Foundation, at the Miami Beach Botanical Garden in Miami Beach.

This year, SAVE honored six young professionals for their contributions to the LGBT community.

"We had over 300 attendees and raised over $30,000," SAVE Executive Director Tony Lima said. "Awesome night!"

033The six honorees: Aaron Bos-Lun, a Homestead High School teacher; Pamela Sweeney, a University of Miami marine graduate; Caridad Tabares, a Univision reporter; Daniel Tilley, for his work as the main LGBT attorney for the ACLU of Florida; Marco Sanchez, a marketing director for Jestony Vodka; and Jose Suarez, an NBC News executive in South Florida.

Suarez said that although he accepted his award personally, he is part of a team at the NBC and Telemundo family.

"We are committed to truth and fairness in all that we do," Suarez said. "Committed to give everyone in the [LGBT] community a voice and be able to tell their story."

South Florida Gay News was also recognized as for its role in the South Florida media market.

During the event, SAVE raised funds by text, setting a goal of $2,014. The group exceeded its goal by nearly $100, according to Lima.

Next year's text goal will be $2,015, Lima said.

Click here to view more pictures from the reception. Photos by ABRAHAM GALVAN / For the Miami Herald.

September 06, 2014 in Bisexual, Business, Current Affairs, Florida, Food and Drink, Fort Lauderdale & Broward County, Gay, Key West & Monroe County, Lesbian, LGBT, Marriage, Media, Miami & Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, Palm Beach County, South Florida, Transgender, Weblogs, Wilton Manors, Workplace, Youth | Permalink | Comments (0)

Law firm Becker & Poliakoff: Anti-gay email from senior attorney Walter Kubitz is 'reprehensible'

On Aug. 25, a senior attorney at South Florida-based Becker & Poliakoff sent an email to practically everyone at the law firm trashing a federal judge's recent ruling that Florida's gay marriage ban is unconstitutional.

Wrote Virginia-based senior attorney Walter Kubitz:

Today’s reckless trashing of morality has been damaging on many fronts. For one, there has been a significant increase in sexually transmitted disease over the past few decades, with the gay plague of AIDS being a classic example.

We would do well to heed the Proverbs 11:21 warning of our ultimate Judge: “Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished.” In other words, popularity does not trump peril.

Homosexuality, clearly condemned throughout Scripture, is especially perilous in that it tends toward the “reprobate mind” as spoken of in Romans 1:18-32 that makes its participants all the more hardened in their ways. The message to the homosexual, as to all, is “Seek ye the LORD while he may be found . . .” (Isaiah 55:6).

Now comes a public response from Becker & Poliakoff, describing Kubitz's email as "reprehensible":

Statement of Becker & Poliakoff

Statement of Becker & Poliakoff regarding the "all attorney" email sent on August 25, 2014

This past Monday, Walter Kubitz, an Intellectual Property attorney in our Northern Virginia office, sent a reprehensible email to all attorneys in the firm. His email was in response to a routine email sharing news about an important legal decision in Florida. 

Mr. Kubitz’ s remarks violated our firm’s email communication policy and our stated core values, which promote inclusion, openness and diversity. Of course, firm employees are entitled to differing opinions on religion and other subjects, however it was inappropriate for him to share such views in the workplace.

Gary Rosen, the firm’s Managing Shareholder and Richard Litman, the Managing Shareholder of the Northern Virginia office, have communicated clearly and directly to Mr. Kubitz that his rogue, disrespectful behavior is unacceptable and will not be tolerated at Becker & Poliakoff. We regret any harm caused by his misguided action. 

September 02, 2014 in Bisexual, Bullying, Business, Current Affairs, Florida, Fort Lauderdale & Broward County, Gay, Key West & Monroe County, Lesbian, LGBT, Marriage, Media, Miami & Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, Politics, Religion, South Florida, Transgender, Weblogs, Wilton Manors, Workplace, Youth | Permalink | Comments (2)

Unity Coalition seeks Hispanic lesbian writers for Celebrate Orgullo panel discussion in fall

writers

Herb Sosa, president of Unity Coalition, is seeking Hispanic lesbian writers for an upcoming Celebrate Orgullo panel discussion.

Celebrate Orgullo, South Florida's Hispanic LGBT Pride Festival will be Oct. 4, 2014 in Miami Beach.

If you know of anyone, contact [email protected]

September 01, 2014 in Arts, Bisexual, Business, Current Affairs, Florida, Food and Drink, Fort Lauderdale & Broward County, Gay, Key West & Monroe County, Lesbian, LGBT, Media, Miami & Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, Politics, Religion, South Florida, Transgender, Weblogs, Wilton Manors, Workplace, Youth | Permalink | Comments (0)

Documentary on gay rights, ‘The Day It Snowed In Miami,’ wins Aurora Award

snow-teaseThe Day It Snowed In Miami, a documentary showcasing South Florida’s role in the gay rights movement, has won a 2014 Aurora Award.

The documentary, by director Joe Cardona in association with the Miami Herald Media Company, was recognized for “great technical execution, good variety of material sources, clear, in-depth interviews.”

The Day It Snowed In Miami which has been broadcast nationally on PBS and screened at South Florida theaters, covers the political battle lines in Miami in 1977 when gays sought approval of a then controversial human rights law. Singer and orange juice pitchwoman Anita Bryant led the opposition.

The Aurora Awards recognize excellence in film and video in international competitions

August 31, 2014 in AIDS and Health, Arts, Bisexual, Business, Current Affairs, Florida, Fort Lauderdale & Broward County, Gay, Key West & Monroe County, Lesbian, LGBT, Marriage, Media, Miami & Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach, Politics, Religion, South Florida, Transgender, Weblogs, Wilton Manors, Workplace, Youth | Permalink | Comments (0)

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Recent Posts

  • Weve moved! Steve Rothaus Gay South Florida is now a section on the new MiamiHerald.com
  • I Love Lucy Live On Stage celebrates Miami run with free cocktail party at Arsht Center
  • Facebook gallery | World Outgames Miami 2017 reception - Sept. 16, 2014
  • Aqua Foundation scholarships help young lesbian, bisexual, transgender women succeed
  • Miami-Dade County commission gives early OK to transgender-protections law
  • Transgender protections come before Miami-Dade commission again
  • Orange is the New Black writer Lauren Morelli leaves husband for actress who plays Poussey
  • Man wins fight to get same-sex union recognized in Arizona
  • Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi appeals several gay-marriage rulings statewide
  • Joan Rivers executive producer speaks at Stonewall museum screening in Fort Lauderdale
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