Good to see Nadine in the neighborhood. She wouldn't remember but we met at Equality Forum a couple of years ago through my friend Miami Freedom Democrats president Chip Arndt. For those not connecting the name, or unaware of the story itself, Nadine was the woman of color who was thrown to the ground and arrested by FOUR white cops for the "dangerous crime" of distributing leaflets [they said "people might slip on them; they could cause fires"—I kid you not!] supporting transgender Steve Stanton at a very public lynching by the Largo Florida City Council in, as I recall, February this year.

Stanton had been their highly praised City Manager of 14 years, with three years as assistant city manager before that, until it was prematurely revealed by the local paper that Steve intended transitioning to Susan. One of the city councilors was a proudly rabid homohater so anyone transgender didn't stand a chance despite Stanton's performance approvals, praise from the mayor, defense by one councilman, and public demonstrations of support by some local citizens. Of course, they claimed that, oops, we didn't really like your performance after all, and, though we're not against anyone's "lifestyle," you lied to us and simply can no longer effectively govern. Alas, Stanton decided not to sue [no pun intended].

Charges against Nadine were eventually dropped. I mention her and the cops' races because the Largo police department has a documented history of racism and only a fool would think it played no part in treating her like the cheerleader with a gun.

Florida will unquestionably play a decisive role in the 2008 Presidential election and it will be good to hear from a local activist.