Pride Fund is proud to stand and fight with Debbie, who is standing up to the NRA, taking action, and making progress toward a safer America. Meanwhile, her opponent Carlos Curbelo is an NRA-backed Republican who puts the gun lobby over the safety of his constituents.

Statement from Jason Lindsay, Founder & Executive Director, Pride Fund
“Debbie Mucarsel-Powell has such an amazing opportunity to turn the tide in one of the closest races in the country while fighting for the safety of Americans and Floridians,” said Jason Lindsay, Executive Director of Pride Fund to End Gun Violence. “After losing her father to gun violence, Debbie has been a fierce advocate for common sense gun regulations in this country. She personally knows how devastating gun violence is and will be an essential voice in Congress in the fight for common sense gun reform,” said Lindsay.

Statement from Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, candidate for FL-26
“I am humbled and honored to have the endorsement from Pride Fund to End Gun Violence. I know what it’s like to get that devastating phone call after losing someone from gun violence and I will fight to make our communities safer to ensure that no one else has to face losing a loved one to gun violence. Working together I know we can achieve commonsense solutions to save lives,” said Mucarsel-Powell.

Debbie has spent her entire career fighting for the best possible future for Florida by standing up for healthcare, the environment, and common sense gun reform. Her personal connection to gun violence means that she will bring a strong and passionate voice to Congress in the fight against gun violence and will not be afraid to stand up to the gun lobby. She is committed to closing the gun show loophole, establishing universal background checks, and ensuring that guns do not fall into the hands of dangerous people. Debbie gives us a strong chance to flip FL-26, and help Democrats take back the U.S. House of Representatives.

Debbie’s opponent, Representative Carlos Curbelo, is a friend of the gun lobby and supports their dangerous agenda. He has consistently voted against common sense gun reform legislation:

• He held a B+ rating from the NRA, reflecting his close ties to their dangerous agenda.
• Has taken $7,450 in direct campaign checks from the NRA and the NRA spent over $67,000 on independent expenditure campaigns to help elect him.
• In April 2013, Curbelo tweeted “Gun restrictions won’t make children safer.”
• In Congress, he voted in 2017 to block the establishment of a Congressional committee on gun violence prevention.
• In Congress, he voted in 2017 against a rule keeping firearms out of the hands of people the Social Security Administration has designated as mentally ill.
• In Congress, he has voted five times against the Federal Government conducting research on gun violence.
• In Congress, he voted in 2015 against the expansion of background checks for gun purchases.
• In Congress, he has voted 22 times against keeping those on terrorist/no-fly lists from buying firearms.
• In 2014, Curbelo was the only school board member to vote for a measure supporting arming teachers.

Previous Florida Endorsements
During the 2018 election cycle in Florida, Pride Fund has previously endorsed Senator Bill Nelson for re-election to US Senate, Congresswoman Stephanie Murphy for re-election in FL-07; Congresswoman Val Demings for re-election in FL-10; Congressman Darren Soto for re-election in FL-09, candidate Lauren Baer in FL-18, Anna Eskamani for the state house in HD-47 and Carlos Guillermo Smith for the state house in HD-49.

About the Pride Fund to End Gun Violence
Pride Fund to End Gun Violence (“Pride Fund”) is the only national LGBTQ political organization focused solely on gun violence prevention. Pride Fund was founded by Jason Lindsay, a gay Iraq War veteran, in the days following the June 2016 mass shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. When it occurred, the Pulse nightclub shooting was the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. Pride Fund supports sensible gun policy reforms while championing LGBTQ safety and equality by advocating for legislation and supporting candidates at the state and federal levels.

To learn more, visit www.pridefund.org. Like us on Facebook and follow on Twitter @Pride_Fund.

The post Pride Fund endorses Debbie Mucarsel-Powell for Congress first appeared on Lesbian.com.

It is my intention that these go out into the world and help keep the conversation about gun control in America going. The pieces are intended to be individual pendants.

If you would like to participate, you can purchase these for $100 each. You will receive a chain with your piece and can begin wearing it. ALL of my proceeds will go to the fight for stricter gun control.
As they are worn the dark patina will fade and the names will emerge and be surrounded by silver. I want their memory to be kept alive. This is my attempt to imagine, that out of this horror, we can create a brighter, better, safer future.

To order, email angela@jewelrytoolery.com.

The post Lesbian artist creates fundraising jewelry for Orlando first appeared on Lesbian.com.

By Erik Olvera, Director of Communications

Joint Statement

We the undersigned organizations working on the front lines of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) movement share in the profound grief for those who were killed and many more who were wounded during Latin Night at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. Their lives were lost or forever altered in this devastating act of violence targeting LGBTQ people. Our hearts go out to all the family and friends touched by this horrific act. We know their lives will never be the same again.

The post LGBT organizations call for unity in the wake of Orlando shooting first appeared on Lesbian.com.

This is almost too easy.

I’m on my way to Orlando to discover the city’s gay (or, even better, lesbian) side, and with six hours of flying time from California to contemplate my task, I have to admit, it does sound pretty crazy. Gay life in the land of Anita Bryant? Rainbows among the orange groves? Have I lost my mind?

But then I get off the plane and lo and behold, the bus that is to take me to my hotel is called — no joke — Disney’s Magical Express. How fabulous is this? I haven’t even left the airport and I’ve discovered the queerest sounding thing I’ve heard in a long time. Is it really going to be this easy? More >

The post Orlando: A lesbian wonderland first appeared on Lesbian.com.

What to eat for dinner tonight? Tapas to make Penelope Cruz weep? Fusion tacos? Pizza fired in a wood-burning oven imported from Italy? Or maybe just the best turkey sandwich you ever had? The wealth of choice gets overwhelming when you’re in a foodie town like … Orlando.

That’s right; the town best known for a four-fingered mouse who doesn’t eat much of anything has spawned quite a food scene. There is offbeat funkiness to please the toughest San Francisco Mission District hipster, and gourmet quality to reward epicureans for not fleeing to Miami. If you’ve been letting a fear of heavy fried Southern food or pallid lowest-common-denominator offerings keep you from Orlando, hesitate no longer: Orlando’s dining options are putting the shine back in the Sunshine State.

Orlando Goes Gourmet

Let’s assume you decide you want something somewhat upscale, creative, and maybe even locally sourced. A good cocktail and/or a decent wine list wouldn’t hurt, either. Your best bet is Winter Park, a posh suburb of Orlando.

The town’s Park Avenue is lined with gourmet restaurants and wine bars, but the jewel in the crown is undoubtedly Prato (124 N Park Ave, Winter Park, 407-262-0050, events@lumaonpark.com, Prato-WP.com). The spot is named after a city in Tuscany, and is about as far from lasagna and Chianti as you can get. The owners have imported a pair of custom-made Acunto pizza ovens from Naples, which they use to turn out crackly-crusted beauties ranging from the traditional Margherita to more adventurous creations such as butternut squash and sage pizza, and pies topped with sheep’s milk cheese and egg. A whole meal could also be made from outstanding antipasti such as tender octopus in a squid-ink vinaigrette, and fresh chickpeas with lemon and garlic. The traditional-with-a-twist theme continues at the bar, where familiar combinations such as vodka and cranberry might be spiked with basil, habanero bitters, or lava salt. Most progressive of all, Prato is committed to supporting local providers, and a large hand-drawn map of the state at the front of the restaurant shows the location of the many Florida farms Prato has teamed up with.

In Orlando proper, downtown’s Church Street is home to Spanish-themed Ceviche (125 West Church Street, 321-281-8140, Ceviche.com). The large, warmly lit space features a lovely hammered-tin ceiling, and is dominated by two bars: One for cocktails, and a central island offering a stunning array of cold tapas. Warm tapas are ordered off the menu, and really show the kitchen’s genius. On paper, offerings like Serrano ham with Manchego and aceitunas y pimientos don’t sound that different from the bar snacks of Spain, but here tapas is not just to tide you over for a late dinner. Here, tapas is dinner, and each plate is made with the highest quality ingredients. The restaurant’s namesake ceviche bowls are outstanding. Traditional shellfish and pulpo please purists, but tuna with lime and onion has a taste of Hawaii, and Ceviche a la Rusa includes oysters and is served with a shot of Russian Standard Vodka. The food at Ceviche is diverting enough, but there is also live music most nights, usually of the flamenco variety.

The City Beautiful Gets Funky

Now maybe it’s later in the evening. Maybe cocktails have already been consumed. Maybe you just don’t want to change out the sensible shoes you tromped around Universal Studios in. A sandwich from Pom Pom’s Teahouse and Sandwicheria (67 North Bumby Avenue, 407-894-0865, PomPomsTeahouse.com) will certainly fill you up and may just change the way you feel about sandwiches, as well.

The restaurant is the brainchild of Pom Moongauklang, who was born in Thailand, raised in Orlando, and shaped by adult years living in other cities, including New York. Her pan-ethnic background shows in her sandwiches, which might include ingredients ranging from yellow curry to salsa to peanut butter and banana. Probably the best place to start is with Mama Ling Ling’s Thanksgiving, a hot, savory starch bomb that features turkey, stuffing, potato, cranberry sauce, and cheese. It comes with a side of brown gravy for dipping and tastes like Thanksgiving, or like Thanksgiving would if it came with fewer stressed-out relatives and more blue-haired students and funky artwork.

To really see Pom’s fusion skills in full bloom, though, make a visit to her other Orlando endeavor, Tako Cheena (932 N Mills Avenue, 321-236-7457, TakoCheena.com). The tacos (“takos,” here) are served with traditional soft shells, but the fillings are anything but. Panko-crusted cod takos resemble the Baja version but sweet and sour sauce takes them somewhere else entirely.  Peanut chicken and gingery, cilantro-laden pork belly pockets taste like a backpacker’s tour of Asia wrapped in tortillas. Anything but gimmicky, the Mexican/Asian flavors complement each other in ways that will astound the most jaded foodie.

A Snack on the Wildside

Ever bite a gator? If it never occurred to you that human/alligator chompings could go both ways, try the happy-hour gator plate at Wildside BBQ Bar & Grille (700 East Washington Street, 407-872-8665, WildsideBBQ.com) in the colorful Thornton Park neighborhood. Alligator is a white meat that tastes and chews something like lean pork, and goes well with beer.

A True Melting Pot

To what does Orlando owe this surprisingly diverse food scene? Probably the fact that, like Disney World, Orlando lures visitors from all over the world—but Orlando’s new arrivals come to stay. The city is growing faster than any place in Florida save Miami. Some of these new arrivals are first-timers, but many are boomerangs, who, like Pom, tried other places but somehow found themselves back where they started.

How does this happen? What about this city best known for its vacation-from-reality theme parks attracts and sometimes recaptures people from all corners? I asked Pom, and her answer may surprise anyone who assumes that Orlando is as lacking in a sense of place as the fantasy lands that made it famous. “Well,” she says, smiling as she refilled my cup of Rooibos, “There’s no place like home.”

Originally published by GirlsThatRoam.com

Nicole Clausing first flew at the age of two months, an evacuation from her Kentucky birthplace to Western Massachusetts, where she was raised. Since then, she has lived in seven states and visited more than 30 countries.

The post Alligator bites and Flamenco nights: Exploring Orlando’s dining scene first appeared on Lesbian.com.

It may not be legal for same-sex marriages in Florida yet, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be a honeymoon destination for LGBT newlyweds.

Converge Orlando Inc., Central Florida’s LGBT visitors bureau, is launching its Honeymoon: Destination, Orlando campaign on December 1, according to Orlando Business Journal.

Read more at TheSeattleLesbian.com

The Seattle Lesbian online magazine reaches more than 188,000 readers per week globally.

The post ‘Honeymoon: Destination Orlando’ targets LGBT newlyweds first appeared on Lesbian.com.