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Such
drama
this
week,
dear
readers,
such
drama!
We
received
word
that
several
houses
in
Wilton
Manors
were
spray
painted
with
silly
gay
slurs--including
a
house
that
was
tagged
with
just
the
word
“gay,”
as
if
that
was
insulting
enough.
When
we
heard
the
news,
at
initially
shrugged
it
off
as
the
handiwork
of
punks
with
too
much
time
on
their
hands,
marauding
through
the
neighborhood
for
fun.
But
then
we
started
looking
through
past
issues
of
our
paper,
and
we
noticed
the
prevalence
of
these
stories:
people
throwing
things
from
speeding
cars
as
they
drive
down
Wilton
Drive,
unsolved
murders
of
gay
victims,
law
enforcement
accused
of
being
unsympathetic,
there
hasn’t
been
a
shortage
of
news
here
in
South
Florida.
So
we
checked
the
police
statistics,
and
we
were
surprised
to
learn
there
has
been
a
rise
in
bias
crimes
reported.
The
details
in
our
cover
story,
“Tagged
and
Targeted,”
are
not
only
about
this
one
instance
of
spray
painting,
but
also
of
anti-gay
crime
in
general.
It’s
the
age
old
question:
is
crime
going
up,
or
is
our
community
just
reporting
it
more
often?
Not
all
is
looking
down
in
South
Florida,
of
course.
We
published
a
story
on
the
passage
of
the
Broward
School
District’s
anti-bullying
policy,
which
is
actually
being
heralded
as
the
most
progressive
policy
of
its
type
in
the
state.
The
wording
on
the
anti-bullying
legislation
is
tricky,
but
effective
nonetheless:
while
there
is
not
any
specific
guidelines
protecting
students
from
being
picked
on
for
being
GLBT
(or
being
perceived
as
such),
legislators
verbally
agreed
to
those
guidelines,
putting
their
promises
on
the
record,
while
debating
the
issue.
According
to
Florida
law,
that’s
good
enough,
and
now
schools
must
protect
students
who
report
being
hassled
for
any
discriminatory
reason.
Broward
School
District
officials
took
the
legislation
a
step
further,
and
wrote
in
clear
language
including
the
rights
of
their
GLBT
students,
and
will
provide
appropriate
training
to
district
employees.
It
sounds
like
it’s
more
than
they
typical
lip
service,
and
it
might
do
some
good.
Bravo.
We
would
be
amiss,
as
a
publication
serving
the
gay
community,
to
not
mention
the
passing
of
Estelle
Getty,
arguably
the
favorite
of
the
four
“Golden
Girls.”
Getty
battled
Alzheimer’s
Disease
for
years,
and
has
long
been
out
of
the
public
spotlight.
It
is
perhaps
prophetic
that
she
passed
away
the
day
before
her
co-star
and
friend,
Rue
McClanahan,
made
her
return
to
television
in
“Sordid
Lives,”
the
latest
series
on
Logo.
Fans
of
“The
Golden
Girls”
always
hoped
for
one
more
reunion
of
the
beloved
show,
but
now
that
McClanahan
has
moved
on,
so
must
we
as
well.
And
congratulations
to
McClanahan
for
her
role
in
“Sordid
Lives.”
We
were
given
advanced
copies
of
upcoming
episodes,
and
the
show
is
quite
funny.
We
have
published
information
on
two
political
trainings
this
coming
week:
the
National
Gay
and
Lesbian
Task
Force
(NGLTF)
and
the
American
Civil
Liberties
Union
(ACLU)
are
amassing
troops
in
the
fight
against
the
horrors
of
Amendment
2,
training
folks
like
you
and
me
in
how
to
be
effective
political
activists.
These
trainings
are
extremely
effective,
even
if
the
people
who
attend
are
there
just
to
educate
themselves.
If
you
have
never
done
anything
political,
now
is
a
great
time
to
give
it
a
try.
There
is
a
much
more
in
this
week’s
paper—from
a
$4,450
pair
of
(used)
underwear
to
a
Q&A
session
with
the
Miami
Gay
and
Lesbian
Film
Festival
board
of
directors,
who
may
have
some
answers
as
to
why
the
organization
is
losing
all
of
its
staff
due
to
budget
shortfalls.
And
finally…there
was,
of
course,
the
scandal
with
Mikey
Verdugo,
the
South
Florida
resident
who
was
a
contestant
on
HGTV’s
“Design
Star,”
who
seems
to
have
enjoyed
some
rather
rambunctious
activities
in
the
adult
entertainment
area.
So
we
asked
you,
dear
readers,
if
you
would
ever
consider
giving
the
adult
entertainment
industry
a
try,
if
you
were
never
found
out.
Guess
what?
Almost
everyone
said
“yes.”
Hmm.
Thanks
for
reading.
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