Florida, Sidelined As States Embrace Marriage Equality, Seeks Honeymoonershttp://www.buzzfeed.com/markjoyella/florida-sidelined-as-states-embrace-marriage-equa-ms2Author: Mark Joyella Source: BuzzFeed
Then there's the other Florida. This is the Florida that looks much more like Alabama and Georgia, and as Miami New Times' Kyle Munzenrieder notes, it's the place where any marriage equality initiative would fail with just 53 percent: "You need 60 percent to pass a constitutional amendment in Florida, which means the state could still be at least a decade away from seeing marriage equality."
[. . . ] In the meantime, people like Mikael Audebert are following the money—by one estimate, 154 million dollars that Central Florida alone will lose over the next three years by failing to pass [marriage] equality. [A financial analyst states] ["i]n addition to the immediate loss of economical impact for businesses directly or indirectly involved in the wedding industry, Florida stands to lose on tourism. LGBT individuals for the vast majority tend to support States and countries that have LGBT friendly policies towards their citizens.["]
With online ads and in-store messaging in Macy's stores in the states that have passed marriage equality, Orlando hopes to send a subtle signal to LGBT couples: we may not have equality in Florida yet, but we're most definitely in this fight with you. And perhaps even more importantly, coming here, rather than Hawaii, will help us get marriage equality passed sooner.
