Sad State of the State

Yesterday was the kick off of the Florida Legislative session complete with pomp and circumstance, flowers and a state of the state address by our Governor Charlie Crist. And, Thanks be to God, I was nowhere near ANY of it! Woo-hoo!!!
I haven't sought out a newspaper to read up on what our Governor believes are the pressing issues facing Florida because they are the same issues year in, and year out: a growing populace with very little incoming revenue to support the state's infrastructure... and the tension between all the necessary functions of government needing funding and the ability to actually pay for them all adequately.
What I'm sure was NOT part of Governor Crist's speech were the sobering statistics I read this morning from the Palm Beach Human Rights Council. Florida, fourth largest state in the nation, ranks 47th in measures of equality for its lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender citizens. The statistics come from a group called eQuality Giving which evaluates the laws affecting LGBT citizens and supports the online efforts of LGBT people to effectively target their donations to further the cause of equality in our country.
When the group looked at Florida... it found the state of the state to be in poor shape, receiving a 1.5 out of a possible six points because:

•There is no statewide law prohibiting discrimination based either "sexual orientation" or "gender identity or expression."
•There is a statewide law prohibiting gay men and lesbians from adopting children.
•Both the Florida Constitution and state statutes prohibit gay men and lesbians from marrying their partners.
•While the Jeffrey Johnston Stand up for All Students Act specifically prohibits "sexual, religious, or racial harassment", the law makes no reference to either "sexual orientation" or "gender identity or expression.

The states that did best were California, Iowa and Vermont. You can look at their scorecard HERE.
What a sad commentary on the state of the state for queers in Florida!
There are efforts afoot this session to pass bills that would end discriminiation in employment, housing and public accomodations, and there is talk of trying to overturn the adoption ban as well. I hope that those bills do get heard in committee in both chambers, I hope they do get moved through the committees to the floors of the House and Senate, and (dare I ask) I hope they pass.
Hope springs eternal!
Meanwhile, the forces who fight for the good of the gay community are hoping to attract many to their big Equality Florida Gala on Tuesday, March 16th. The gathering at the Mary Brogan Museum promises to be a night of solidarity, and social fun as EQFL raises necessary revenue to stave off the lions that are waiting to pounce on us again in the 2012 elections. With any luck, we can be successful in turning back those who would do us harm, and maybe making some forward progress so we can leave the basement of the equality rankings. That would be a state of the state I'd enjoy.