winter party photos

the 35 best, in this set on Flickr

City Hall Protest - Manhattan - Nov 15, 2008

The thousands who gathered in protest at Manhattan's City Hall Park on Saturday November 15, 2008 (as did concurrently folks in dozens of other communities across the nation) raised signs and voices and received encouraging words promising a world of justice if we could all just learn to love rather than hate. In other words, it was 1968 all over again. I wanted to brush the hair out of my eyes, hand the policeman a flower and hum a Laura Nyro song.

The rain cleared and a gorgeous fall day energized our family of protesters. Here are Craig, Foxy, ex- blogger Tommy (shaded), Chris, Wilson Cruz, Little Nick, Paul, C and Eric. (Anyone know the name of the guy in the white t?)



Also with us was Wolf, your bartender this past summer at The Vault in Provincetown. He has recently returned from a cross-country trip in a SmartCar.



Diversity reigned.









I got to meet long-time Farmboyz readers Jeff and Beau of Harlem.



Wilson posed with a couple together for ten years who wish they could become married (and take Wilson on their honeymoon).



Here we find Paul Vitale and Eric Leven stirring things up...sort of.



The Playgirl van circled the park a few times, the implications of which are pondered by a watchful cop.



A friend of ours, Manny Xavier, recited one of his poems.



Seriously, despite a few dumb moments at the podium, this event, like the one at the Mormon Temple earlier in the week, really did give me hope about the future and I was happy to see a new generation rise up in angry declaration of intolerance for injustice. The faces on the tourists in the double decker buses reminded me of the extreme value of events like this. It was a success. It was quite wonderful.

Michael Albetta, Dean Trantalis and Norm Kent video

At the end of the rally at City Hall, Michael A. Albetta, President of the Florida GLBT Democratic Caucus (and perhaps the most powerful speaker overall at this event) introduced City Commissioner Dean Trantalis who took a moment to introduce the Norm Kent, publisher of National Gay News.Com whose proclamation summarized much of the day.

I've listened to a lot of gay hooting and hollering for rights over the years, most of which could be chalked up to beer and would be burned away by the next day's sunlight, but this event was superior. Those who spoke demonstrated a closing of ranks among the local leadership against a seriously out-of-control bigot, Mayor Naugle.

Flush Naugle

flushnaugle rally#3
Originally uploaded by farmboyz

Local political leaders came together on Tuesday to close ranks against Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle whose bigoted comments have finally galvanized an otherwise sleepy gay community.

The rally at City Hall attracted about a thousand participants, mostly gay men. The impressive roster of speakers included Matt Foreman, Executive Director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, whose words were strong and clear, directing Floridians to shun Mayor Naugle and to exclude him from any gathering of decent people.





The real product of the "Flush Naugle" movement is a unifying grassroots movement that will probably result in the eventual toppling of the bigoted mayor and his replacement with more inspired leadership.

It was a pleasure to be part of this crowd. Interestingly, these are mostly not the men one sees out at the bars and sex clubs and bath houses and gay beaches of Fort Lauderdale, but these are the men whose work will guarantee the rights of those guys, making Fort Lauderdale an even better gay mecca. I suspect the "Flush Naugle" movement will expand rapidly and will develop some real muscle.