Who? Kevin Beckner and Darden Rice, candidates for, respectively, the Hillsborough and Pinellas county commissions.
Spheres of influence: Public policy on the environment and smart growth; Democratic politics and county government.
How they make a difference: By offering a progressive and pro-environmental alternative to their Republican opponents, Beckner and Rice have helped set the agenda for the Democratic Party on both sides of the bay, one that puts smart growth at the forefront of the political discussion. As candidates who made conscious decisions to be open about being gay, they are also inspiring the LGBT community and underscoring — while not exactly campaigning on — a message of diversity and tolerance in Tampa Bay.
CL: Tell us about the decision to be open about your sexual orientation in this campaign.
Beckner: For [our campaign], we talked about it very early on. We know that from the previous history of our opponent [incumbent Hillsborough County Commissioner Brian Blair] and what he's done in the past, and also given the makeup of Hillsborough County, we have found that it's important just to talk about it now and get it out in the open. You know there was a lot of buzz, a lot of chatter, and actually to be honest with you, there's probably been more interest by the media than there was from our actual constituents.
Do you expect your opponents to try to use your sexual orientation as a wedge issue against you?
Rice: We'll be prepared if that happens.
It hasn't happened yet?
Rice: It has not happened yet. But I would say, in a scenario where you have an opponent who is affiliated with the Christian conservative right, I expect some kind of attack. Not directly from my opponent, but from some type of surrogate.
You were attacked in that fashion during your 2007 St. Petersburg City Council race. Was that a big distraction for your campaign?
Rice: It really wasn't. It was a turning point in our campaign, because I think we responded to it so well, and we got a great deal of credit from the larger community in how we dealt with something that was unfortunate. And we went right back to talking about the issues that are really what's mostly on people's minds right now.
What does the media get wrong about covering matters regarding sexuality in politics?
Rice: I think there are two things they get wrong, right off the bat. Number one is referring to it as sexuality. It's sexual orientation. It is two different words, and orientation is what we're discussing. Secondly, a misperception I see is that our life is referred to as a lifestyle. And it's not a "gay lifestyle." Lifestyle is what kind of sofa I pick out to go with my living room. Being gay is life.
I'm a part of our community. I think what the Tampa Bay community misunderstands or underestimates about the gay community is that we're not a community that's just focused on a narrow set of issues. We're part of the community and we care about the big, larger issues facing us — the environment, mass transit, thoughtful growth management.
Beckner: I think there are a lot of stereotypes that run in people's minds. A lot of times, the way the media treats it — and this also has to do with the individual — it seems to be a front-page story. It seems to be headline news when somebody is gay or somebody is lesbian. I still struggle to understand why it's a breaking story when you talk about somebody being gay or being lesbian. As Darden mentioned, this isn't a lifestyle. This isn't something we haven't chosen to be; it's who we are.
If you were already on the Pinellas board, would you have voted to add transgendered people to the county human rights ordinance?
Rice: If I were on the Pinellas County Commission, there wouldn't have been a tie vote. We would've seen a fully inclusive human rights ordinance passed in my county.
Were you disappointed in Calvin Harris, who said he didn't know what a transgendered person was?
Rice: The transgendered people are probably the least understood and the most vulnerable in our community, and we need a human rights ordinance that protects them. It's just the right thing to do. I would encourage Commissioner Harris to look at the success the city of Gulfport has had with the fully inclusive model.
Beckner: I ask anybody to show me what banning gay pride in 2005 [as the Hillsborough County Commission did] has done to better our community. I would argue that it has not only affected the LGBT community, it has affected our whole entire community. Because Hillsborough County is well-known across the world and across the nation, and unfortunately it's not for the right reasons.
I think over time my colleagues will begin to realize, especially with the budget cuts we are going through, that we have got to look at bringing in other streams of income. So if we're going to do that we have to make our community more inclusive. If you look at the billions of dollars the LGBT community spends on a national basis per year on travel, to say we don't want a part of that business, especially in these looming economic times, I think that would be wrong.
Would you make it a priority to overturn that ordinance?
Beckner: As a countywide representative, what I'm focusing on are global issues. That would not be the first thing I would step up to do.
What is the first thing you would do?
Beckner: As a certified financial planner, what I do is I sit down with people and help them make a game plan. I think that's one of the key things that's also missing in this county is right now we have seven individual commissioners that, in essence, have their own little agendas going. What we really need to do first is get on the same page.
Rice: Kevin's ideas are right. You have to get in there and talk to people and set priorities and do an assessment. But I do have a pet list of things. I want to be appointed to Tampa Bay Water, and I also want to be appointed to our regional transportation commission. I also want to immediately set up foreclosure assistance programs, because I think that's one of the biggest fallouts from our economy here locally. I think it's about time that we looked at doing what we can to set aside permanent protections for Brooker Creek Preserve.
How will Obama's candidacy and the gay marriage amendment affect your campaigns?
Rice: I think what's so exciting is that if there ever was a year the Democrats could have the wind in our sails, [it's this year]. We have a very inspirational, strong presidential candidate. The national appetite and hunger for change is really going to help us to sweep through and help carry some of the down ballot races.
I don't think either one of us is running a proxy campaign [against] Amendment 2, but certainly a vote for either one of us is going to be a vote against that amendment.
Beckner: Since they started using the whole marriage amendment issue back in 2000, I think the voters are staring to wise-up now. I think they're starting to understand that when these types of initiatives come out, it's not necessarily against gay marriage, it's about getting a certain base of people out to vote. I think they're also wising up to the fact that all these candidates that have run on these types of wedge issues really haven't delivered anything that really impacts or improves the quality of life. I think as they're looking back, they're starting to figure out this has all been a game. This has been a big farce that has been put into play to get certain people out to vote and they're starting to see through that.
Like Brian Blair's attack on the "Day of Silence?" Have voters brought that up to you?
Beckner: People asked about the Day of Silence. I think you all as the media, you got it pretty right when you said that this is an election year; the Day of Silence has been going on for years, and why [is Blair] bringing this up now? … This was a precursor, a preemptive strike in his behalf to test the waters on how he can drive a social wedge issue back into the campaign. He's been about dividing the community rather than uniting the community.
Have you had a chance to talk to any non-out gay officials for advice or words of encouragement?
Beckner: I've had a lot of conversations. And I think this is another thing people don't realize, too. You're talking about "openly gay" candidates, but they don't realize we're not so different from other people. I've been in a long-term, committed relationship for the last nine years. My significant other has greatly served this community in the role of law enforcement for over 23 years. A lot of times when people hear about openly gay, they have these stereotypes and don't realize we're not so different than everyone else. We all face a lot of the same issues and have a lot of the same concerns. I think a lot of times when people think of "Oh, the first openly gay candidate" they don't realize that Hillsborough County and counties across the state have been electing officials for years that have been gay but have not chosen to talk about their personal life. People just need to know some of the highest-ranking officials in this state happen to be gay, and they're doing a phenomenal job; they just don't talk about it.
How high-ranking?
Beckner: [laughs] I'll leave that to the media to do their homework. I'm not in the position to name names.
Rice: I'm aware of another county commissioner who becomes livid when this person reads an article about me and the phrase that precedes my name is "openly gay," because she's like, "Well since when did you change your name to 'openly gay,' and I'm offended the paper even thinks it's important to qualify you in this way."
Beckner: I've actually gotten probably more support because I'm running open as opposed to running under the radar.
Rice: I don't think running under the radar was ever even an option.
Beckner: People say that's a courageous, bold thing to do, but they see that you're a genuine real person. You're not coming to the table hiding anything. You're putting it on the table, and as I talk to you more, I find out that you care about a lot of the same things I care about. A lot of the same things that are important to you are important to me. It really has to do with starting to understand and coming to know a gay or lesbian person. You start to find out they're not really as different as you are.
Rice: Yeah, we're gay. So what?
Editor's Note: Darden Rice has a Democratic primary opponent in the race for Pinellas Country Commission. She is Rene Flowers, a former St. Petersburg City Council member. The winner of the primary will face School Board Member Nancy Bostock.
