| A Few Steps Forward |
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| Written by Brad Helgeson-Tampa Tribune |
| Sunday, 30 November 2008 00:00 |
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BYLINE: BAIRD HELGESON, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it SECTION: VIEWS; Pg. 1 LENGTH: 1583 wordsAn Ybor coalition is among signs support for the gay community is growing in the Tampa Bay area.By BAIRD HELGESON This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it TAMPA - Chicago, Philadelphia. Tampa?Carrie West, who helped start the GaYbor District in Ybor City, wants to turn his community into one of the nation's top gay and lesbian destinations."It's revolutionary, I know," said West, an owner of MC Film Festival. "But we can do it. Things are changing."Gays and lesbians have had their share of setbacks in the Bay area. In 2005, Hillsborough County's Board of Commissioners voted to prohibit any display of gay pride on county property. Then, in this year's general election, 62 percent of Florida's voters cast ballots to amend the state Constitution to prohibit gay marriage.But amid all the high-profile heartbreak, there are signs large and small that the Tampa Bay area is growing more supportive of gays, lesbians and their families. Consider:*The gay and lesbian community that left Ybor City in the early 1990s is returning to play a key role in its resurrection.*A local salsa instructor is satisfying a growing interest in a class for gay and lesbian dancers.*And in Palmetto, the nation's first gay and lesbian retirement community is appealing to people nationwide seeking a slice of Florida paradise.Perhaps no sign of support is clearer than the election of Kevin Beckner, the county's first openly gay commissioner. He defeated Brian Blair, a supporter of the county's ban on recognizing gay pride.For many, the election of Beckner signaled a tidal change that gives gays and lesbians some swagger in the community. Beckner's success, they say, is part of something bigger.A Community DisbandedGays and lesbians inhabited much of Ybor City until 1993, West said."They just kicked us out," he said.One gay bar tried to endure."There was one drag queen in the window," West said. "She looked like a caged animal."The bar closed and the gay community dispersed throughout Tampa, St. Petersburg and Gulfport.West and his partner of 30 years, Mark Bias, followed the community out of Tampa. They moved their gay-themed video, music and gift shop from the area near the University of Tampa to the legendary gay hotel called the Suncoast Resort in St. Petersburg.By the early 2000s, parts of Ybor City became a dilapidated bar district, where boozy violence and gunplay became routine. Dozens of historical buildings sat vacant, occupied by junk and thriving populations of pigeons.When the Suncoast closed last year, West and his partner brought their videos, rainbow boas and gay-themed memorabilia to North 15th Street in Ybor City. The date of the shop's resurrection: Fourth of July 2007.Rebirth In YborWest has tried to make Ybor the incubator for a gay renaissance in Tampa.He and others started the GaYbor District Coalition, a group designed to beautify the area and create a gay-friendly community.Initially, they wanted to call the area West End and downplay its gay character. But the thinking was, "No, we have to be out," West said.The founders' initiatives were no different from any grass-roots group trying to revive a struggling neighborhood. They wanted to clean up the area and increase public safety. They persuaded owners of empty buildings to spruce up storefronts and put art in the windows.The activity drew the attention of Mayor Pam Iorio, who held at least two meetings with GaYbor founders to discuss their successes and offer the city's help.The city cut back parking-meter hours to make the area more enticing to visitors.Tampa police boosted the number of officers in the area, including more gay and lesbian officers, West said.Restaurants and bars such as Streetcar Charlie's, G. Bar and Spurs opened. More are on the way, along with car shows, a tennis league and a drag-queen pageant.By now, West expected to have 20 members of the GaYbor District Coalition.Instead, 135 businesses and individuals have joined, including many owned by people who aren't gay. The group has 24,000 friends on its MySpace Internet page."I think people were initially scared," said West, who ran unsuccessfully for Tampa City Council in 1998. "But when they started to see the successes we were having, they wanted to join."Men, Women And SalsaSimone Amaral never imagined she would be part of any gay and lesbian movement.The Brazil native noticed one or two gay or lesbian couples enrolled whenever she started a new salsa class.Her entrepreneurial spirit took over as she wondered whether a class specifically for gays and lesbians might make them feel more comfortable."I think some people in the gay and lesbian community were still a little afraid," said Amaral, who has taught dance for nine years.She held her first Rainbow Pride salsa class in Town 'N Country this year. The session became so successful, another is set to begin after the holidays.Amaral learned some things had to change. In the past, she told students the first rule of salsa is the man always leads. That drew laughter and groans from the couples.Now she talks about the lead and the follower.Amaral said it's impossible to get hung up on gender when you teach. She routinely leads female students and can seamlessly toggle from the man's role to the woman's role, even when she practices with her boyfriend."This not a place for gays and lesbians. It's not a place for straight people. It's a place for dancers."Graying Gays And LesbiansThe growing support for a local gay community also is spreading to those who have known intolerance the longest.Joan LeBlanc and her partner retired from teaching in Provincetown, Mass., and spent five years touring the country in a motor home.They missed being part of a community and having a home base to entertain friends.So they ditched their nomadic lifestyle and decided to settle somewhere.LeBlanc's partner, Jeanne Brossart, fondly recalled childhood vacations in Florida.LeBlanc, 70, admitted she didn't like the idea of Florida at first. It's flat, she said. "Where's the beauty?"And the state did not have a reputation for being gay-friendly.Then they found The Palms of Manasota, the nation's first gay and lesbian retirement community. The community in Palmetto has no gates, 21 single-family homes and 22 lakefront villas, and more homes are planned."Within 15 minutes, I fell in love," LeBlanc said.The Palms markets itself as part of the Bay area and has served as a model for gay and lesbian retirement communities across the nation.Residents often gather for dinners, to walk their dogs or to ride their bicycles around the community. A straight couple moved in because the neighborhood is close to their jobs.Giving CreditLocal gays and lesbians give a large part of the credit for growing support to a surprising force: state Sen. Ronda Storms, a former county commissioner who led the effort to ban recognition of gay pride on county property.They said Storms, and to some degree Blair, activated an otherwise quiet pocket of the electorate. Suddenly, they saw the county legislating discrimination and certain commissioners advancing social issues.Beckner said his election reflects the will of an energized and diverse community. They don't see him as the gay commissioner, he said, but rather as the candidate who listened to their concerns."I got elected to bring people together," he said.That's not to say the gay and lesbian community feels it has achieved equality."In any civil rights movement, the cause takes one step forward, three backward, and then two steps forward again," said Sharone Kay, spokeswoman for Tampa Chaverot, a social club for Jewish lesbians of Tampa Bay."Twenty years ago no one was even saying the words 'gay' or 'lesbian,' and now here we are talking about gay marriage."Kay, echoing the hopes of GaYbor District founder West, paints a bright picture."The younger generations, those in middle school and high schools, are far more open than their parents," said Kay, a mother of two."These older fanatic, right-wing generations need to pass on, and with the younger people will come greater acceptance and civil rights, even for us gay folks."Reporter Baird Helgeson can be reached at (813) 259-7668.Photo credit: Tribune photo by KATHY MOOREPhoto: Simone Amaral, owner of Simone Salsa, noticed a few gay and lesbian couples attending her classes and decided to create a Rainbow Pride class this year.Photo credit: Tribune photo by JIM REEDPhoto: Jeanne Brossart, left, and Joan LeBlanc are right at home at Palmetto's Palms of Manasota, the nation's first gay and lesbian retirement community.Photo: Dancers Poseidon, left, and Brody Ebersole take a break from festivities Friday at Streetcar Charlie's, a gay-owned business in Ybor.Photo credit: Tribune photos by KATHY MOOREPhoto: Lee Portalatin, left, and Elaine Tintera dance at Simone Salsa on Hillsborough Avenue, which now offers a Rainbow Pride class.Photo: Carrie WestHe helped start GaYbor District.Photo: MC Film Festival moved to Eighth Avenue and 15th Street in July 2007, an area of Ybor City now known as the GaYbor District.TBO.com ONLINEThe passage of Amendment 2 was a setback for Florida's gay residents. But there are signs the Bay area is becoming more supportive of gays and lesbians. At Simone's Salsa, gender and sexual orientation don't matter. They are all dancers.Keyword: Gay Progress, to watch a video at Simone Amaral's salsa studio.Copyright © 2008, The Tampa Tribune and may not be republished without permission. E-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it |
