More than seven years ago, gays, lesbians and their straight allies rallied and marched in downtown Tamp after the Hillsborough County Commission voted to ban gay pride events. In an attempt to make the commissioners pay for their votes, LGBT advocates tried to pressure business leaders to boycott Tampa's hosting of the Super Bowl in January of 2009 — but that went nowhere.
Activists will tell you that Hillsborough County, demographically speaking, is very different than it was less than eight years ago. This is why some are saying that the vote by four GOP Commissioners to reject a domestic partner registry is a totally different ball game.
The leading gay rights group in the area, Equality Florida, announced on Monday that it will host a town hall meeting to discuss what happens next. The meeting takes place Tuesday, Feb. 5, at the Children's Board in Ybor City from 6-7:30 p.m.
This article appears in Jan 24-30, 2013.