Anti-gay Mayor Jim "$250K robo-potty" Naugle has so polarized matters in Fort Lauderdale that press conferences and demonstrations are getting tense, according to Jeff Black of UNITE Fort Lauderdale, which sponsored a Faith Press Conference the other day, featured speakers from many denominations and religions to discuss unity, inclusiveness, and acceptance.
Inclusiveness was not on the agenda on Tuesday as members of homophobic black churches, stood with Mayor Naugle at City Hall preaching they are going to take back the city, removing the sin and sinners. Religious men -- in paramilitary gear -- were also standing aside the mayor bleating that "the depth of sexual sin in Broward County necessitates an old-fashioned spiritual revival." From Jeff's email to me:
They escorted me from the front door to the elevator when I entered the building today for this press conference, and stood 'post' at the elevator lobby. The video is frightening, worse was I was standing in the room with these people and worried what was going to happened next.
Elder Mathes Guice of the Koinonia Worship Center in Pembroke Park said the county tourist council's targeted marketing to gay visitors "led the spiritual community on a collision course with Satan.'' He said "we have no other choice but to step up and do the right thing'' by holding the revival.
"We love the homosexual people,'' said the Rev. O'Neal Dozier of Pompano Beach. "We find them to be precious people. We want them saved.''
One clergyman was not impressed.
"I'm going to be ill if we don't get out of here soon,'' said Archbishop Bruce Simpson, who traveled from Pennsylvania to talk about the mayor at a news conference scheduled Wednesday evening at City Hall. Simpson is the author of "The Gay Face of God.''
UNITE Fort Lauderdale hasn't heard of Naugle's new friends from Koinonia Worship Center before, so Jeff Black tried to find out more about it. From the rest of his letter:
As an organizer of the Unity Press Conference and Prayer Vigil, representing inclusive faiths, I spoke with Major Carter of the FLDP last night and after Mayor Naugle paraded this new group out in front of the Mayor's offices and lobby. Major Carter was concerned and is now increasing the police presence at the gathering of clergy at 5:15 this evening.
I've never heard to this group before, the ones in military dress. They concern me a great deal. When I entered City Hall yesterday evening to observe the press conference the Mayor had called with them. Two of them escorted me from the front doors on the north side of the building to the elevators and then stood and took up 'posts' in the elevator lobby.
I tried to find out information on the group but was only able to find a MySpace profile which included an audio track. The audio track is of a military leader talking to a subordinate and explaining how they are in the battle to take back what they have lost for the black man while in the background you hear gun fire and battle sounds.
What I'm hearing on this page is scary. "Special OPS (operations) Units" of the church. References to "Exercising Spiritual Authority"?
The audio on the page sounds like a lot of bloviating hot air to me, but why on earth is Naugle associating with fringe churches like this? What a PR nightmare for Fort Lauderdale. The local Tourism Board, which booted Naugle from its board for his unyielding, loony vitriol toward the gay community, has to be roiling as the situation continues to unravel before the media.
You'd think the unnaturally homo-obsessed Mayor of Fort Lauderdale would have taken a breather from his 24/7 campaign to destroy tourism there, but sadly, Jim Naugle hasn't gotten the message. he's continuing to assert that there is an epidemic of gay male sex going on in the public beach restrooms.
After failing to convince the city to spend $250K on robo-toilets to prevent all the imaginary man-on-man action (the police can account for only two arrests in three years), he has gone on a public crusade that only further gives Fort Lauderdale a black eye.
For instance, the mayor recently held another press conference, this time flanked by fundies to promote "healthy public places" (video here and here). At his side:
* the Rev. O'Neal Dozier of Pompano Beach's Worldwide Christian Center ("Everyone, regardless of his place on the political spectrum, should agree that public sex-whether it be in parks, restrooms, department stores, or bathhouses - endangers lives and fuels the public health crisis we face in Broward."); * Dr. John Diggs of the Massachusetts Physicians Resource Council * infamous radio fundie Janet Folger of Faith2Action ("The mayor is doing what most families want. We don't want to be known as the AIDS capital in the country."); * Gary Cass, president of the Christian Anti-Defamation League * Pastor Willie McBride of Lauderdale Christian Center in Plantation.
Also in this HealthyPublicPlaces.com coalition supporting the mayor, some familiar names -- Americans for Truth, Christian Anti-Defamation Commission, Christian Interactive Network, Concerned Women for America, Coral Ridge Ministries, Faith2Action, Stephen Bennett Ministries, and the Worldwide Christian Center.
Diggs handed out copies of his discredited paper, "The Health Risks Of Gay Sex," which goes into details that they love to obsess over, with headings for "gay sex" such as Anal-genital, Oral-anal, Human Waste, Fisting, Sadism. Never mind that heterosexuals practice such things; that would ruin Diggs' party. Debunking of this paper can be found here.
Activist Anthony Niedwiecki was interviewed for the Sun-Sentinel article on the press conference wrote this about Diggs:
He basically attributed every sexually transmitted disease to men on men sex, including anal cancer (not a STD, but he repeatedly referred to this) and HPV. When asked by a reporter why they are not addressing the increase in HIV cases among African-American and Haitan-American heterosexual women, the population that has seen the highest increase in Broward over the past few years, he blamed it on gay men on the "down low". He essentially blamed gay men for every new disease out there and on every new incident of HIV transmission. As I told one reporter, I felt like it was August 21, 1985.
As Anthony noted, in Broward County women make up a third of HIV cases diagnosed in the past 10 years. It begs the question why this crowd is fixated on imaginary gay men having sex in a beach restroom, rather than communities where they need to focus their attention.
Fort Lauderdale ranks # 6 among gay vacationers last year -- and the demo represents 11% of the $8.5 billion that rolls into Broward County's coffers annually. Naugle is flushing it all away. The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau has been alarmed at the fallout from the homophobic mayor's tirades, and has sent out letters to try to stave off a boycott of the area.
According to Waymon Hudson of Fight Out Loud, on Thursday the tourism board shared with Naugle the blowback that is already occurring:
Board members said that each time the mayor speaks they receive hundreds of E-mails from potential visitors to Ft Lauderdale, saying they plan to take their money elsewhere. One board member said a 200-person group was scheduled to stay at a prominent hotel in Ft Lauderdale. In light of Naugle's comments, they have placed the reservation, along with $250,000 in revenue, on hold. These concerns have come from not only gay and lesbian travelers, but from other tourists as well. They have said they no longer see the Greater Fort Lauderdale area as a welcoming or safe place to travel.
What did Naugle say in response?
"I am the Mayor that's not going to back down. One of the things that my dad taught me is that it isn't always about the money, it's about doing what's right."
And he's going to take all of you folks in Fort Lauderdale down with him.
It looks like the tourism industry in Fort Lauderdale is so worried about taking a hit because of homo-obsessed Mayor Jim Naugle's outrageous anti-gay statements that members of the commission have signed a letter declaring that the area is gay-friendly. It's hard to hear that message when the mayor advocated for the installation of $250K robojohns to halt imaginary beach restroom sex (gay male sex, that is).
Commissioners called the outspoken Mayor bigoted and said his remarks were despicable, but even had they officially censured him it would have no effect. Although Fort Lauderdale is within the county, as a separate city with its own council the county can exercise no control over the resort town or its politicians.
But as concerns mount of a possible tourist boycott the commissioners said they want the worldwide LGBT community to know they disagree with Naugle. County Mayor Josephus Eggelletion and all 9 commissioners signed a letter voicing their support for gays.
...So concerned is the tourism industry over the potential fallout the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau is using paid media watchers in New York and Europe to see how far the story is spreading.
Naugle doesn't give a damn.
Naugle dismissed the county move, telling the Sun-Sentinel that the county has no influence on him. "I have only spoken the truth, and sometimes the truth hurts but it needs to be said," Naugle told the paper.
Here's a laff fest from activeChristianmedia.com -- videos of support for Jim Naugle. Have tissues ready as you weep with laughter.
What's so ridiculous is that the videos portray the LGBT activists as in favor of sex in public restrooms, when that's obviously not the case. The rally is about the embarrassment heaped by Naugle on their city; he continues his homobigoted bleating even though the police have said there have been no reports of this imagined orgy of men in public beach restrooms.
Anti-gay Mayor Jim "$250K robo-potty" Naugle has so polarized matters in Fort Lauderdale that press conferences and demonstrations are getting tense, according to Jeff Black of 
Elder Mathes Guice of the Koinonia Worship Center in Pembroke Park said the county tourist council's targeted marketing to gay visitors "led the spiritual community on a collision course with Satan.'' He said "we have no other choice but to step up and do the right thing'' by holding the revival.
