They're Here, They're Queer, They Vote

Opening shots on September 10th's gay-rights ballot

A A A Comments By Brett Sokol Thursday, Jun 13 2002

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Don't tell that to Jorge. "We're all more afraid of the Hispanic community than we should be," he laments. "This attitude of 'Oh my God! They're Hispanic!' so there can't be any gays, there can't be anything out of the norm -- for lack of a better word. That's underestimating Hispanic culture, and that's underestimating Hispanic people." He cites previous experiences going door-to-door for SAVE Dade with elderly Latino voters.

"At first you may get some resentment or some uncomfortableness when you talk about the gay issue," he says. "But when you steer them back to the issue at hand -- I can be fired simply because someone in my office finds out I'm gay, or I can be denied housing because the mortgage broker finds out I'm gay -- the support has been great. It all depends on how you present it."

Steve Satterwhite

As the fight over Miami's gay-rights amendment heats up, Jorge Diaz steps up

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Moreover Diaz believes Miami is changing into an entirely new city. And he's going to ensure his brother keeps in touch with that pulse: "It seems like there's a different attitude here -- all kinds of people are feeling much more confident about this administration."

Well, the new mayor isn't throwing things at people.

"That's a start," Diaz deadpans.

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