 Florida State Senator José Javier Rodríguez introduced Senate Bill 84 (SB 84) to protect LGBTQ youth from receiving conversion therapy, which falsely claims to be able to change people’s sexual orientation and gender identity, from licensed mental health practitioners, on November 21, 2018. With SB 84, Florida becomes the first state to introduce legislation to end conversion therapy in the 2019 legislative session. “In most states it is still legal to force children into conversion therapy and that is wrong. When it comes to this debunked practice, there is no conversion and there is no therapy. So-called conversion therapy does not work because youth are who they are. They should be supported rather than shamed. More importantly, the practice we seek to ban is not therapy.” said Sen. José Javier Rodríguez (D Miami) “The long-term, even lethal, damage it does to youth is well documented. If you’re going to be a licensed practitioner in Florida, refraining from harming our youth with this debunked practice should be a basic requirement.” A poll released in 2017 showed 71% of Floridians support banning conversion therapy for minors. Twenty local governments in Florida – both cities and counties – have adopted conversion therapy bans, which is more than in any other state in the country. Read More... By Joshua Beadle The holidays are fast approaching and there's so much to do... holiday parties, happy hours, working, happy hours, cooking, working out, and more happy hours... and dont forget about all the gift buying! We wanted to make sure that this holiday season you help support your community by shopping locally so SarasotaOUT.com gathered a list of gift ideas from local LGBT friendly and LGBT owned businesses! Check out our list below and make sure to tell them SarasotaOUT.com sent you! Happy shopping... and see you at the happy hours!
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By: Joshua Beadle
In this month's midterm elections, voters across the country sent a record number of LGBT candidates to Congress and Colorado elected the nation's first openly gay governor. These victories come 40 years after the assassination of the first openly gay elected official in California — Harvey Milk. Last night Shannon Fortner, ricipient of Sarasota's 2018 ICON award, hosted a demonstration at Five Points Park to remember the San Francisco Board of Supervisor who in 1978 coaxed the city council to pass a gay rights ordinance that protected gay people from being fired from their jobs. On Nov. 27, 1978, Supervisor Milk and Mayor George Moscone were assassinated by Dan White, a former police officer and former city supervisor who had clashed with Milk over LGBTQ issues. A hand-full of candle lit supporters, gathered on the rather chilly night in front of a rainbow lit sign of Harvey Milk. Shannon spoke with a megaphone, standing on a soap box and referenced the tragic Pulse Nightclub shooting from June 12, 2016, stating, "Our hearts beat on to honor the lives we've lost" and reminding us that the work we do each day keeps Harvey Milks' legacy alive. The success of LGBTQ candidates in the midterm elections would have been hard to imagine four decades ago when Milk first won office. In his life he was a political hero, in his death, a martyr. His existence though, led the way for future generations to fight for our LGBTQ rights. Harvey would be proud. Members of ALSO Youth, Divine AF, SarasotaOUT.com, Firefly SRQ and a handful of curious patrons were in attendance.
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