Many believe that Carlos Gimenez's endorsement from several gay rights groups in the Miami-Dade County mayoral election helped propel him to a narrow victory over Julio Robaina. So why the hell was he speaking at a breakfast sponsored by the Christian Family Coalition, a fringe organization most notable for opposing the "homosexual agenda" at every stop and trying to resurrect anti-gay laws from Miami-Dade's homophobic past?
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Not everyone is happy with President Barack Obama's announcement yesterday that he personally supports the idea of gay marriage, least of all the evangelical Florida pastor who is an important adviser to the president. Rev. Joel Hunter, leader of an Orlando-area megachurch, says he is "disappointed" by Obama's decision.
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In an interview with ABC News, President Barack Obama announced this afternoon that he now supports gay marriage. It's a striking change from the commander-in-chief on the same day that North Carolina's voters followed in Florida's footsteps in passing a gay marriage ban. "I think same-sex couples should be able to get married," he says.

Hooray! Of course, the news isn't likely to have any actual effect -- especially since Obama adds that he still supports states deciding the issue for themselves. Still, Obama's interview should have a particular resonance in Florida, considering voters here passed a same-sex marriage ban on Nov. 6, 2008 -- the exact same day they voted Obama into office.
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Photo by Brandon K. Thorp

George Rekers and his none award winning escort.

​Remember George Rekers, the anti-gay activist and Baptist minister whom& Miami New Times caught procuring the services of a male escort from RentBoy.com in 2010? Well, what do you know, RentBoy.com's annual award show, appropriately called "The Hookies," is coming up, and the organization thought briefly about giving an honorary award to Jo-Vanni Roman, Reker's favorite rentboy, but decided against it because, you know, he sort of broke the first rule of being an escort.
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Rep. Richard Steinberg, a Democrat who represented Miami Beach in the state House, quickly resigned this week after it came to light that he was under investigation for anonymously texting a female assistant U.S. Attorney messages like, "Sexxxy mama?"

That means his seat is now open, and its possible that this straight sex scandal could pave the way for Florida's first openly gay state legislator to emerge. Florida, despite being home to gay hotspots like Wilton Manors, South Beach, and Key West, is interestingly the largest state in the Union to never have had an openly gay legislator. Yep, even Texas has had one.
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​There's no shortage of lists purporting to rank America's gayest cities, but those often come from a gay male point of view. And those lists tend to leave both lesbians and Miami in the cold. For example, a recent Advocate list somehow concluded that Orlando is gayer than Miami.

Thankfully, a new list by Autostraddle.com (and reprinted on Jezebel) has restored Miami's Kinsey scale pride by listing us as one of the most "lesbianish" cities in America.
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​Using a highly scientific formula that considers factors including WNBA teams, nude yoga sessions, and local Mr. Leather semifinalists (uh, no, really), the Advocate magazine has crunched out its annual list of the "Gayest Cities in America." The Sunshine State was well represented -- by Fort Lauderdale and Orlando.

Miami's gay day has long since passed, the magazine writes, as the city has seen a "mass exodus" because "a real estate boom priced out many gay clubs." (Was this piece secretly written in 2008?)
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​Hazing in the Florida A&M University Marching Band appears to have run rampant for years, but why was the hazing doled out to drum major Robert Champion so severe that it killed him? An attorney for Champion's family now claims Champion might been targeted for harsher hazing in part because he was gay.
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​North Miami Beach residents aren't so concerned that there's a new gay strip joint in town. They're more concerned about the club's name: Swinging Richards. For you slow folk out there, that pretty much translates to "Swinging Dicks." While it's certainly an apt name for a male strip club, some residents don't appreciate the bluntness.
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via WTSP

The Lambert-Jolleys

​As Florida residents, Rachel and Charlotte Lambert-Jolley knew that their marriage in Connecticut, where same sex weddings are legal, wouldn't be recognized in their own home state. They at least hoped, however, that it would help expedite the process of legally changing their last names to their new hyphened surname. The newlyweds claimed they were humiliated at the DMV when they applied for the change and told that their marriage "means nothing to the state of Florida."
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