Award winning filmmaker Kareem Tabasch is to make an ANITA BRYANT Doc ….. pies and all

We may be called the Sunshine State here in Florida, but that hasn’t stopped us from having our fair share of demons over the years. A few of the present ones have left us to be part of Trump’s circus and one from the past has just died. Anita Bryant may have physically left this earth (yeah) but her story is about to be turned into a documentary as it plays a significant part in the history of the State’s queer community.

Bryant’s claim to fame was when she won the Miss Oklahoma title in 1958 and the runner-up to Miss America the following year.  She was signed up to promote Florida Orange Juice and also signed up to make records.  She even had a minor hot with ‘Till There Was You’, and was nominated for two Grammys for best sacred performance and best spiritual performance.

In 1977, Dade County, Florida, passed an ordinance (sponsored by Bryant’s former friend Ruth Shack)  that prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation. Banning this became a compulsive obsession for Bryant who led a highly publicized campaign to repeal the ordinance, as the leader of a coalition named Save Our Children.  Like others before her in similar situations, she claimed this was “God’s Work” ……..(he really gets the blame for so many issues like this)  Bryant relied on the ignorance of her followers to preach about the sinfulness of homosexuality and the proposed threat of homosexual recruitment of children and child molestation.

The singer was especially concerned about the fact that the ordinance risked authorizing homosexual people to work in Christian schools and become role-models because her own children were enrolled there. The campaign was based on conservative Christian beliefs regarding the sinfulness of homosexuality and the proposed threat of homosexual recruitment of children and child molestation.

Bryant technically won as the law was overturned but in reality, she lost as her actions galvanized the LGBTQ community into positive action against her campaigns ….. and just as important …. against orange juice too. It was the beginning of the end for her but not before she was ‘pied’ i.e. a fruit pie was smashed into her face.  Seeing her then as she sings to God to forgive her assailant for his deviant behavior is something you cannot erase from your memory.

Now local queer filmmaker Kareen Tabsch and producer  Alex Fumero have just announced they are about to film her story. Tabsch came onto our radar with The Last Resort which so beautifully captured part of Miami Beach’s past with the history of all the Jewish retirees that cluttered the hotel’s front porches soaking up the sun.

The timing of Tabscah’s new project couldn’t be more perfect as the whole LGBTQ community ……. particularly transgenders …… may now have to start the fight for our equal rights all over again