ORLANDO | The One Orlando Alliance has retracted the offer of employment made to former Alabama Rep. Patricia Todd to serve as the organization’s executive director after Todd suggested on Twitter May 15 that Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey is a lesbian.
“The Board affirms that Ms. Todd’s recent comments are not aligned with the values of One Orlando Alliance. We strongly believe that coming out is a personal choice and we do not support involuntarily outing,” said Jennifer Foster, Chair of the Board of Directors and one of the original co-conveners of the Alliance, in a press release. “This has been a challenging situation. While Ms. Todd has a well-established record of outstanding service to the community, her lapse in judgment has led us to end our relationship with her. We admire her many decades of exemplary service and believe that, with the right opportunity, Ms. Todd will continue to use her many talents to make significant progress advocating for justice and equality.”
Todd was offered the position as the first executive director for the One Orlando Alliance, a non-profit group of more than 30 LGBTQ organizations formed in the days after the Pulse shooting, after an extensive nationwide search that began in Aug. 2017.
The controversy began after Todd tweeted, “Will someone out her for God’s sake….I have heard for years that she is gay and moved her girlfriend out of her house when she became Gov. I am sick of closeted elected officials.”
Todd has since changed her privacy settings on Twitter allowing only those who she allows to view her tweets.
Ivey, who is currently running for re-election, responded through a campaign spokesperson saying, “This is a disgusting lie being pushed by a paid liberal political hack. There is absolutely no truth to it.”
Todd was to start with the One Orlando Alliance June 1. The rescinding of the position was decided by unanimous vote by the organization’s board of directors.
“Weaponizing queerness through the act of outing others is a violation of the sacred rite that we as queer people undergo in our journey of self-discovery,” said Christopher J. Cuevas, who represents QLatinx – a One Orlando Alliance member organization. “It is a form of psychic and emotional violence; a violence that robs one of their ability to self-actualize and manifest their truth; a violence that hinders the fostering of fellowship and community; a violence that calls into question our ability to see the value in trusting others with our authentic self. When our humanity is violated in this way, how can we find space to begin healing in self and to promote the healing and growth of others?”
One Orlando Alliance will continue with its search for a new executive director.
