EDGE Miami

Progress remains a relative term for LGBT activists in their quest for equality in the eyes of the law. And while 2009 has certainly shaped up better than its predecessor, Florida activists faced a challenging year as they sought to advance their cause on a statewide level.

Besides the state’s lack of statewide marriage or domestic partnership rights for gay couples, Florida also lacks an LGBT-specific employment non-discrimination bill. And the Sunshine State remains the only one in the country that bans a single gay or lesbian person from adopting a child. These statistics sparked eQuality Giving to rank Florida 43rd among the 50 states and the District of Columbia in its recent equality report.

But Mallory Wells, public policy director of Equality Florida, expressed optimism change is within reach. The Competitive Workforce Bill, introduced last month to the state legislature, would add non-discrimination protections for LGBT Floridians. And Wells said its prospects are "better than ever."

In terms of the adoption ban, an appeals court decision on Gill vs. the Florida Department of Children and Families is likely to arrive within two months. The case is expected to end up in the state Supreme Court, where precedent could destroy the ban if judges agree with a lower court’s decision that found the ban unconstitutional. A statewide coalition of legal, psychological and children’s welfare organizations have filed briefs in favor of the plaintiff’s right to adopt.

"I think the community has been making really great progress over the past couple years," Wells told EDGE. "It may seem slow, but we’re steadily heading toward our goals."

Progress for LGBT Floridians this year came more at the local level.Wells and other activists interviewed for this story agreed the state’s many local milestones are key in building momentum toward next year, an election year, where many showdowns could build an atmosphere for further statewide influence.

Broward County Mayor Ken Keechl, Miami Beach Commissioner Michael Gongora and St. Petersburg City Councilman Steve Kornell and other openly gay candidates who won their contests have made for increased visibility.

And legal victories at the municipal level have been many. These include the defeat of an anti-LGBT civil rights bill in Gainesville, the passage of domestic partner benefits to city employees in Miami and Tallahassee and expanded protections for Tampa’s transgender residents. The domestic partner victory in Tallahassee, the state capital, was met simultaneously with the passage of anti-discrimination and harassment protections on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

Despite these victories, R. Zeke Fread, director of Pride Tampa Bay, is not quite as optimistic for activists’ efforts to take on the legislatures’ Republican majority. He disagreed with Wells, noting the Competitive Workforce Act has stalled and was "not getting legs," as it has yet to gain enough sponsors to come up for a committee vote.

"We have had some wins, but any type of [statewide] legislature in Florida continues to not go anywhere," Fread said. "It’s depressing how anti-gay [lawmakers] are in Tallahassee."

CJ Ortuño, executive director of SAVE Dade, one of the organizations that fought for Miami’s trans-inclusive ordinance, said he feels the significance of the state’s local battles should not be understated.

"I see the local progress as an investment toward state and national change, the building blocks that will eventually lead to statewide or federal legislation," Ortuño said. "Once policy change is being achieved on the ground, in the trenches, then we will have created a climate where state and federal lawmakers can look at legislation already existing in their own backyard."

Ortuño also said activists’ improved efforts to work together and share resources while fighting for local victories should be noted, particularly through the formation of Organizations United Together (O.U.T.) earlier in the year. He added he feels feels coalition-building, in addition to educating legislators and engaging both volunteers and donors, will be important in the further pursuit of progress in the name of LGBT-specific legislation.

"Our coalition needs to send a strong message, and that’s something our opposition does well," Ortuño shared. "We have to realize we have the same goals and can only achieve these together."

Both he and Wells agreed: More victories are not far off. Wells hopes 2010 will be an even brighter year for LGBT Floridians as Alachua County’s consideration of domestic partnerships shows. She said such news would have been inconceivable only a few years ago. And Ortuño added he anticipates "serious changes" within the next three to five years.

"You could always ask for more," he said, "but I think we’re moving in the right direction."