In November 2013, St. Petersburg residents elected Darden Rice to the City Council. It was Rice’s third campaign. The landscape had changed since her first run in 2005, when she was the first openly gay candidate to seek office in St. Pete.
Eight years later, St. Petersburg has three gay council members, had taken huge steps toward LGBT equality, and saw its annual Pride celebration swell to record-breaking numbers.
As a life coach, I love stories about pioneers and perseverance. Darden Rice was kind enough to share her journey.
PEGGY GREEN: Between 2005 and 2014, I have personally experienced a huge change in the level of gay-friendliness in St. Petersburg. What accounts for that?
DARDEN RICE: 2005 was the year that I decided to run for City Council. I had a number of neighborhood leaders who were familiar with the work that I had done on conservation issues. I had been an organizer for years, and so I was asked to run—the first person to run openly gay in Pinellas County. I was young. I hadn’t run before. I was 35.
In your campaign photo, you looked 25—maybe.
As part of my stump speech, I actually had to state my age because I didn’t look old enough to run for office. Funny how that didn’t become an issue eight years later.
Who asked you to run?
Karl Nurse [now a St. Pete City Councilman]. He was a neighborhood leader. He was a good friend and a mentor. Being gay didn’t really have a whole lot to factor into that decision. I never felt that being gay would be something that could stop me.
What’s the hardest thing you faced in the 2005 campaign and how did it help you in future campaigns?
Getting used to being a candidate. And frankly, sometimes as a candidate, you do become a little bit of a product. You need to look a certain way, dress a certain way, sound a certain way, and you need to be consistent with it. And when I first got into it, it felt very strange, and then I got used to it. The days of showing up in flip-flops and shorts were out the window.
Something happened in a 2005 forum. It turned into a shouting match.
It was a Town Hall I organized to speak to the voters of my district about affordable housing. An anti-gay activist basically tried to out me even though I was already out. So her plan was to force the media to write about it. She asked me if I was gay and I said, “Yes. I am. And that’s why I know that fairness is important to everybody and that discrimination is something that hurts everyone.” And her response was yelling, “God’s not down with that!” and to go storming out the building all hyped up, to make sure the media caught every word and every gesture.
Who had your back that night?
Oh everybody—that whole panel that was up there with me, they were totally with me, and the people in the audience too. Karl has always had my back.
How important is it to have an ally who will speak for you at times like that?
Oh it’s absolutely critical. And it was also helpful because Karl’s straight. So I had straight friends stand up and say, “This is an offensive argument. This isn’t an issue people care about.” Yes it’s an enormously helpful.
What do you know in 2014 that you wish you knew in 2005?
In 2005, I was running against an incumbent who was closely tied to a popular mayor. Mayor Baker was very smart about how to use [my being gay] against me in the black churches.
What was so gratifying about my win in 2013 was to see that people who once opposed to me in 2005 came on as my strongest supporters in 2013. Our community, our city and our world has turned this corner where, what was once a barrier, has dissolved in such a few short years. And that’s what’s so amazing to me. You know, you spend your whole life building these bridges and you’re lucky if, in your lifetime, you live to cross one.
I often hear you use the word “conservationist” rather than the word “environmentalist.” Why that choice?
It’s my goal, as a communicator, to keep people in a solutions-based mindset. So I try to avoid using words that trigger ideology. Because when you do that, people stop thinking.
I use the word “gay” a lot just because it’s easier to use the word rather than rattle off a string of acronyms. LGBTQQ+ starts to sound dehumanizing. When I saw the +, I thought, “Well ‘plus’ is a handy term.” But I can certainly see how the transgender community would want to hear that [“T”] pronounced.
Where do progressives thinking about entering public life find help?
The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, Emily’s List, Ruth’s List… People thinking about running for office really need to avail themselves of some of these basic trainings. The idea that you can do it on your own without learning from people who’ve done it hundreds of times would be foolish.
You need to figure out that doing this is what you really want to do. Maybe winning your particular race isn’t that difficult. But once you win it, are you happy? Are you going to be a good public servant?
Right up there in the top five American fears are: public speaking and moving. In the middle of your 2013 campaign, you find yourself outside the district you are running from. You’ve just lost your father, you’re giving speeches all over town, and now, because of redistricting, you have to move. What sustains you?
My partner, Julie, and I decided early on that some things were worth fighting for. And, what they were trying to do with redistricting, in a way it was a gift because it made me angrier than ever, and that’s when I got really fired up.
I thought, “If they want to get rid of me, they’re gonna have to try harder than this! They’re gonna have to beat me in the ring, because I’m running!” I was really committed to the path I had chosen. And when you’re committed, you do what you have to do to get the job done.
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