The occasion was so special, Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor added magenta beads to her uniformed look. Mayor Bob Buckhorn hopped on a garishly red motorcycle.
For the first time in 13 years, the Tampa Pride Parade was back. It used to be Florida’s largest LGBT pride event. Now it had returned. And so had Tampa’s identity as a community that embraces its diversity.
The memory of a county commission that once voted to “abstain from acknowledging, promoting and participating” in gay pride recognition or events was just that–a memory. Just ask Mayor Bob, Chief “Nobody does a parade better than Tampa” Jane or any of the thousands who crowded the parade route along Ybor City’s Seventh Avenue. Tampa was rainbow friendly and proud.
But not everybody was cheering on LGBT advocacy. A couple of notable public officials, Gov. Rick Scott and Hillsborough County Commissioner Stacy White didn’t sign proclamations honoring Tampa Pride. But they’ll have other opportunities.