Refuge at rainbow's end
Hillsborough County gays and lesbians, shunned at home, are offered a safe haven.
By BILL VARIAN
Published July 30, 2005
TAMPA - A controversial gay pride vote by Hillsborough commissioners has given let-it-all-hang-out Key West an excuse to throw a party in protest.
Following Hillsborough's vote to ban gay pride recognition by county government, Key West and Monroe County commissioners have passed proclamations declaring Aug. 12-14 Hillsborough County Pride in Exile Days.
Community leaders are organizing a parade down Duval Street, cocktail parties, a drag queen show and a dramatic re-enactment of the June 15 vote by the Hillsborough commission.
In other words, just another weekend in Key West.
"The point of all this is to show support for everyone in Hillsborough County, but especially for gays and lesbians," said Greg Needham, co-chairman of a group calling itself Key West Cares About Pride. "It will also give them a chance to experience a weekend in a place where gays and lesbians are fully supported by the city and county governments."
Key West is famous for its offbeat and sometimes irreverent celebrations, from Key West Fantasy Fest, a Mardi Gras-style party featuring lots of body paint, to the Hemingway Days commemoration of "Papa." Each year drag queens race down Duval Street in high heels pushing shopping carts during the Great Conch Republic Drag Race, and residents and tourists gather nightly to watch the sunset and applaud street performers at Mallory Square.
It also is a city where gays and lesbians are a very visible part of the social fabric. Many credit them with breathing lifeblood into a dilapidated outpost in the late 1970s and early 1980s, spearheading its revival by investing in homes and businesses.
A rainbow flag hangs inside the Key West City Commission chambers, and the town's official slogan and philosophy is "One Human Family." Drag queens are as much a part of the landscape as singer Jimmy Buffett's Parrotheads, Ernest Hemingway and conch chowder.
"We don't discriminate," said Mayor Jimmy Weekley, a third-generation conch who sponsored the commission's proclamation. "We open our hearts and arms and minds to everyone and invite them to our community."
So when word of the Hillsborough County policy passed, the people who inhabit the United States' southernmost point reacted in stupefaction.
"I was just horrified," said Tom Oosterhoudt, owner of the Pelican Poop art gallery and city commissioner who describes himself as "gay as a goose. I can't imagine a county commission denying the rights of a minority."
Hillsborough commissioners voted 5-1 last month to abstain from acknowledging, promoting or participating in gay pride recognition and events. The vote came after patrons complained about a gay pride display at West Gate Regional Library highlighting books by gay authors and exploring gay themes.
Those who attend the Keys' festival can get a Pride in Exile library card good for discounts at stores, restaurants and other attractions.