|
A
national
gay
Latino
organization’s
decision
to
present
a
recognition
award
to
Miami
Republican
Rep.
Ileana
Ros-Lehtinen
has
stirred
a
debate
about
what
role,
if
any,
a
politician's
stand
on
abortion
should
play
in
getting
endorsements
from
gay
and
lesbian
groups.
Last
fall,
the
board
of
Llego
—
which
stands
for
the
National
Latina/o
Lesbian,
Gay,
Bisexual
&
Transgender
Organization
—
voted
to
honor
Ros-Lehtinen,
a
Cuban-American
known
for
her
strident
anti-Castro
views,
for
her
support
of
gay
rights
and
AIDS
funding.
She
was
invited
to
Llego’s
annual
recognition
dinner
in
April,
but
did
not
attend
because
of
a
scheduling
conflict,
said
Gloria
Niato,
co-chair
of
Llego’s
board.
Llego
still
plans
to
honor
Ros-Lehtinen
at
a
special
event
on
Capitol
Hill
later
this
year,
Niato
said.
“We’re
going
to
recognize
her
at
a
different
date
when
she
can
make
it,”
Niato
said.
“She
was
one
of
the
first
people
to
get
on
board
in
the
Miami-Dade
campaign.
She’s
someone
who
understands
human
rights.”
Christine
Protillo,
communications
director
for
Ros-Lehtinen,
confirmed
that
the
congresswoman
could
not
make
the
Llego
dinner
because
of
a
scheduling
conflict.
She
said
Ros-Lehtinen
supported
human
rights
for
everyone
and
was
glad
to
be
honored
by
a
gay
group.
Honored
for
stands
on
gay
health/AIDS
Martin
Ornelas-Quintero,
president
of
Llego,
said
Ros-Lehtinen's
“record
in
support
of
LGBT
health
issues
is
the
main
reason
she
is
being
recognized.”
He
noted
that
Ros-Lehtinen
has
been
a
strong
supporter
of
HIV/AIDS
funding.
And
he
said
that
Ros-Lehtinen
worked
with
gay
health
organizations
in
pressuring
the
Bush
administration
to
keep
gay
health
issues
in
Healthy
People
2010,
a
federal
health
document.
He
also
cited
the
congresswoman’s
outspoken
support
for
Miami-Dade’s
gay
rights
ordinance
when
right-wing
groups
sought
to
repeal
it
in
2002.
Ornelas-Quintero
pointed
out
that
Ros-Lehtinen
has
been
recognized
by
other
gay
organizations.
In
February,
she
received
an
award
from
the
National
LGBT
Health
Coalition
at
a
reception
in
the
Human
Rights
Campaign’s
building
in
Washington.
Ros-Lehtinen
has
not
stated
a
position
on
the
proposed
constitutional
amendment
to
ban
same-sex
marriage.
“When
a
staff
member
from
my
office
talked
to
her
office
a
couple
of
weeks
ago,
she
hadn’t
decided
where
she
stands
on
FMA,”
Ornelas-Quintero
said.
Nevertheless,
he
thinks
Ros-Lehtinen
deserves
to
be
recognized.
“When
you
work
with
politicians,
you
have
to
be
very
clear
why
you’re
honoring
them,”
Ornelas-Quintero
said.
But
some
gay
activists
objected
to
Ros-Lehtinen
being
recognized,
primarily
because
of
her
pro-life
position
on
abortion.
“I
don’t
think
she
should
have
been
invited
to
the
recognition
dinner,”
said
Carmen
Vasquez,
deputy
executive
director
for
the
Empire
State
Pride
Agenda,
a
statewide
gay
rights
group
in
New
York.
“It
was
an
inappropriate
thing
for
them
to
do.
This
is
an
individual
who
has
consistently
voted
against
choice
legislation.
Regardless
of
party
affiliation,
an
anti-choice
candidate
is
not
someone
that
gay
and
lesbian
organizations
should
support.”
Vasquez
noted
that
Llego’s
recognition
dinner
was
held
during
the
same
weekend
that
a
national
march
for
abortion
rights
was
taking
place
in
Washington,
D.C.
Vasquez,
who
attended
the
march,
thinks
it
was
inappropriate
for
a
gay
group
to
invite
an
anti-abortion
legislator
to
speak
when
an
abortion
rights
march
was
taking
place.
Ornelas-Quintero
of
Llego
acknowledged
he
had
heard
from
three
people
who
also
expressed
their
disapproval.
Other
activists,
however,
said
the
abortion
issue
should
not
be
used
as
a
litmus
test
to
decide
whether
or
not
gay
voters
and
gay
groups
should
support
a
politician.
Luigi
Ferrero,
project
coordinator
for
Union
Positiva,
a
Latino
AIDS
service
organization,
said
Ros-Lehtinen
deserves
to
be
honored.
“In
terms
of
HIV,
she
really
has
voted
our
way
90
percent
of
the
time,”
Ferrero
said.
“There
are
not
too
many
Latino
legislators
in
the
country,
and
of
the
ones
who
had
not
been
recognized,
Ileana
stood
out.
There
are
really
few
Latino
role
models
in
the
country
who
have
picked
up
the
HIV
banner.”
Ferrero
said
Llego's
Orneas-Quintero
had
called
him
to
ask
him
what
he
thought
about
the
idea
of
honoring
Ros-Lehtinen.
“I
told
him
I
felt
comfortable
with
it,”
Ferrero
said.
Jorge
Mursuli,
Florida
director
of
People
for
the
American
Way,
also
agreed
with
Llego’s
decision
to
honor
Ros-Lehtinen.
“I
think
Ileana
has
been
a
supporter
of
gay
rights
issues
for
us,”
said
Mursuli,
who
was
also
honored
at
Llego’s
dinner.
“She’s
progressed
on
this
issue,
and
we
should
welcome
people
when
they
come
aboard.
I’m
grateful
for
her
support
for
the
human
rights
ordinance
in
Miami
Dade.”
Mursuli
said
Ros-Lehtinen
“wasn’t
vocal
during
the
passage
of
the
[Miami-Dade]
ordinance,
but
she
spoke
out
against
the
attempted
repeal.”
 |
 |
| The
following comments were posted by our readers and were
not edited by floridablade.com. We ask that you
treat others with respect; any post deemed offensive will
be removed. |
|
| 
