Equality Florida stated that:

Florida has a dark history when it comes to Equality for the LGBT community, beginning with the John's Committee of the 50's and 60's - Florida's own McCarthy-esque Senate Committee whose job it was to identify, expose and publicly destroy gay people and supporters of civil rights. Florida was also home to Anita Bryant, who launched her national anti-gay crusade right here in South Florida, destroying lives and families in her wake.

After the press conference at Kitchenetta in Fort Lauderdale, I had a chance to record a video, one on one with Ayanbedejo. The video is after the break along with more.

The AIDS Drug Assistance Program is a federally funded program administered by states and designed to serve as a safety net to ensure needy and vulnerable people living with HIV/AIDS can access life-saving HIV medications.

The House of Representatives already passed their version of a continuing resolution and did not include this funding that was critical for us to be an AIDS free generation.

On March 11 and 12, 2013, Equality Florida will be hosting their 2013 Lobby Days. Dozens of activists are expected to converge upon the Florida state capitol to fight for pro-equality legislation.

Below is a video message from Florida Senator Chris Smith, Senate Democratic Leader, inviting advocates to Tallahassee to participate in Equality Florida's 2013 Lobby Days.

More after the break.

"I think the best way to judge where my heart is, is to look at the deeds that I have done, whether as attorney general, governor..."

Since last September's Democratic National Convention, I've been eagerly awaiting for Charlie Crist to prove he has a compassionate heart and clearly argue his position on marriage equality. I have also been waiting on the Democratic National Committee and President Obama to make right with LGBT convention delegates and facilitate a meaningful dialogue with Crist on issues important to LGBT Floridians. Both the DNC and President Obama have fallen flat on their face and failed miserably to ensure such opportunities existed between Crist and LGBT activists.

In the days leading up to the 2012 Democratic National Convention, I publicly raised the issue as the only openly gay elected delegate of 8 delegates representing the DNC Chairwoman's congressional district to the Convention. Officials from the DNC shamefully berated me when Steve Rothaus at the Miami Herald published a blog post entitled Gay Democratic delegate: Convention speaker Charlie Crist 'the ultimate political whore'.

So over the last several months, I did what I could to encourage LGBT Floridians to register to vote and become involved in a campaign that shared their values and vision for a better and more inclusive society. In South Florida, there were two major election victories that were very personal for me.

The first victory was in Florida Senate District 34 where incumbent State Senators Maria Sachs (Democrat) and Ellyn Bogdanoff (Republican) fought in an ugly and costly battle as a result of redistricting. Sachs has continually been a genuine champion for the equality of all people and she defeated her opponent - who lacked the spine to advocate for the rights of her gay child - winning 52% of the vote. As a gay man and a former Republican, it only affirmed why I chose to leave a political party and its leadership who continually placed equality for LGBT people on the alter as a sacrificial lamb so they can hold their grasp on power.

Given Bogdanoff's anti-gay record on LGBT equality in the Florida state legislature, this past Saturday at a rally in Wilton Manors, I publicly questioned if in 2012 if blacks did not have the right to vote, would Bogdanoff be a vocal advocate to fight for her adopted African American daughter's right to vote?

Given the clear parallel for her to fight for her gay son's equality, I thought it to be a fair question.

While I'm not sure if it was a play on words, it just continues to tell the tale of a spineless legislator who continues to dig her head deep into the sand and fails to lend a voice of leadership for LGBT Floridians in the state legislature where words like "uterus" can't be uttered on the floor of the House of Representatives.

My issue has never been Bogdanoff's son. In the comments section of my first article about this, one of Bogdanoff's campaign workers decided to go completely nuts in post comments and outed Bogdanoff's gay son.

Given Bogdanoff's campaign decided to out the identity of her son, I figured I would tell the story of how I learned Bogdanoff had a gay child that left Florida to live in a state where LGBT people are respected.

Don't be fooled by Ellyn Bogdanoff's election year disguise. Locked in the biggest Florida state senate fight of the year, Bogdanoff would like you to believe she's been a friend of the LGBT community - don't buy it!

In her 12 years in the Florida Legislature, Bogdanoff has never co-sponsored or taken a public position in support of any of the issues Equality Florida fights for.

But worst of all, Bogdanoff has repeatedly blocked efforts to protect LGBT students and in 2007 led an unsuccessful effort to remove sexual orientation and gender identity from every safe schools policy in Florida. We stopped her, barely, but to this day she insists specific protections for LGBT students are unnecessary.

Fortunately, we have a tremendous alternative in this race. Maria Sachs has supported and co-sponsored every pro-equality bill. Sachs voted to strengthen anti-bullying protections for K-12 students by ensuring all students, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, were protected under the law. Sachs also co-sponsored legislation to provide statewide employment non-discrimination protections and a statewide domestic partnership policy.

The stakes are incredibly high and this race will likely determine if there is any balance of power in the Florida state senate. If you live in Senate 34, which includes parts of Broward and Palm Beach counties, be certain you vote for our champion, Maria Sachs!

Last night I walked to the local market to pick up a few grocery items. While walking home, I stumbled upon Monte, a fine specimen of an "undecided voter." We chatted a bit and he shared that he recently moved back to South Florida and hopes his voter registration application was recorded in time for him to vote this election. There was no need to make any arguments or voter persuasion as Monte was only sporting his Halloween costume. So I gave him with the web address for him to check his voter registration status with the Florida Division of Elections.

The walk home helped me reflect on efforts the last several weeks to register voters, debating the issues, and engaging in honest conversations about candidates for office. Time and time again, everyone agreed that we needed real leadership from our elected officials on LGBT issues. Each needed to find the courage within them to become more vocal and take ownership in the fight for LGBT equality.

Yesterday for the first day of early voting, I volunteered at the Wilton Manors City Hall early voting site to campaign for Florida State Senator Maria Sachs. The line maintained a steady 300 voters waiting for up to 3 hours to cast their ballot.

I was shocked to see Florida Republican State Senator Ellyn Bogdanoff sheepishly engage only with the few heterosexual voters in line. Voters knew all too well that in 2006 when Bogdanoff served in the Florida State House of Representatives she blocked efforts to include enumerated protected classes as part of the state's anti-bully law. State Representative Ken Gottlieb, a Democrat and attorney, led the effort to argue the need for the state legislature to include protected classes that include sexual orientation and gender identity/expression.

Bogdanoff had no problem throwing lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students under the bus and ignoring the fact that LGBT people are targeted more than any other population for bullying and discrimination.

Laurie Rich Levinson, Vice Chair of The School Board of Broward County, Florida brought the resolution forward. The School Board of Broward County voted unanimously to support the board resolution. According to Equality Forum, Broward is the first school board to adopt such a resolution. For the last seven years, Equality Forum, a Philadelphia-based organization has been coordinating LGBT History Month worldwide, producing documentary films, undertaking high-impact initiatives and presenting annually the largest national and international LGBT civil rights summit.

The agenda item appeared before the school board on September 19, 2012. The statements made by each speaker moved the school board and the audience for nearly forty minutes. The most powerful of the speakers were the voices of two Broward County Public Schools high school students, Eliana Mor and Lapolaean Washington. They shared how important the resolution was for themselves and their peers for the school board to adopt the resolution.

As a result of redistricting, Debbie will no longer be representing Wilton Manors. The Florida Legislature traded her gay populous island city for Miami Beach. While I'm saddened Debbie will no longer be my elected Member of Congress, she will always be my champion and someone I look up to as a big sister. Even if I tower above her in height.

You can get a sense of who Debbie is from this video of her talking about her large LGBT-constituency at the last conference of the Southeast Regional Gay Men's Health Summit in 2010:

When I resided in the congressional district where Allen West was elected in 2010, his office quickly and cowardly refused to meet with me and other advocates when in Washington DC with the Treatment Action Group for What Would You Do for the Cure, an AIDS research advocacy effort. Granted I have some history with West, but as soon as his staff heard my name they sharply replied, "No, we will not meet with him".

I guess West is still bitter about a gay man living with HIV/AIDS shutting down his town hall.

Over the weekend, I had the chance to sit down with Congressman Alcee Hastings (D-FL) to discuss how important this election is for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and HIV/AIDS communities. On top of the Republican driven voter suppression efforts around the nation, Hastings spoke about the Republican trickery of not challenging key black democrats so black voters are not as fired up this November.

Keep in mind, it was only a few months ago when Speaker John Boehner stated that he hopes black and latinos stay home in November.

For weeks, AIDS advocates have been working tirelessly in a bipartisan manner to have the legislative branch of the United States express its support of the XIX International AIDS Conference which ends today in Washington DC. This is the first International AIDS Conference (IAC) was held in 1985 and hosted in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1990, San Francisco, California hosted the last time the IAC was in the United States.

In 2009, President Obama signed off on the repeal of the unconscionable HIV travel ban that was based on fear and not medical science. Last week, I had the pleasure to speak with President Obama while visiting South Florida and we spoke about the International AIDS Conference and his repealing the HIV-travel ban under his watch.

Minutes before the close of business yesterday, the US Senate passed Senate Resolution 5320726 FINAL AIDS 2012 Conference resolution [pdf] by unanimous consent. The measure was led by Florida's senior Senator Bill Nelson and co-sponsored by Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Maria Cantwell ( WA), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Mike Enzi (R-WY), Ben Cardin (D-MD); Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Mary Landrieu (D-LA) and Herb Kohl (D-WI).

This past September 8 the Fort Lauderdale Mayor and Commissioners quietly and sheepishly adopted an ordinance to extend benefits to the domestic partners for its work force of more than 2,300 city employees. When addressing the issues of discrimination, Fort Lauderdale's municipal ordinances fails to have an inclusive non-discrimination policy to protect LGBT employees in the work place, nor does it require the same in contracts for vendors doing business with the city like that of the Broward County Board of County Commissioners.

Last week, I attended the City Commission meeting to speak about an agenda item concerning vendor preference. The proposed item contained no provisions to address inequities many LGBT-individuals face in the workplace.

AIDS advocacy groups like HIV Prevention Justice Alliance, National Minority AIDS Council (NMAC), AIDS United and the National Association of People with AIDS (NAPWA) have all issued action alerts warning of the looming danger of roll backs to programs so critical to reduce injected drug use and slow the transmission of HIV and Hepatitis C.

Several years ago, a dear friend once shared with me his painful struggle to escape the living hell of shooting up on crystal meth and how for years he lived with a "dirty secret" and feared reaching out for help. As tears ran down his cheek and fell from his chin, he explained the painful process of reaching out to friends for help - but he continually found himself abandoned by those close to him and desperate to find a way out.

As he went on with his story, he praised the efforts of harm reduction groups offering a syringe exchange program that helped him break free from a time never to be revisited. If it were not for the efforts of that organization, my friend would not be alive today.

After the jump, you will find the action we are asking you to participate in.