Ronda Storms
Encyclopedia
Ronda R. Storms is a member of the Senate
of the U.S. state
of Florida
. Affiliated with the Republican Party
, she has represented the 10th District since 2006.
Storms had an eight-year tenure on the Hillsborough County
Commission (1998-2006) and advanced a number of controversial issues.
, into a military family, and moved around often, growing up in Germany, Turkey
and Alabama
. Spending many formative years in Turkey, she used to be fluent in the Turkish language
, but has had "little call for the language recently."
The Newcomb family finally settled in Brandon, Florida
when Ronda was 16, and she graduated from Brandon High School
in 1983. She earned a bachelor of arts
degree in English education from the University of South Florida
in 1988, as a S.C.A.T.T. honors graduate. For a time, she taught English at Bloomingdale High School
in Valrico, Florida
, and later went on to pursue her Juris Doctor
at the Stetson College of Law in Gulfport
, receiving her law degree in 1995 Cum Laude.
She married David Storms in December 1986. They have one daughter, Roxanna (born 1999) and one son, Elijah Gideon (born 2008). They currently reside in her home district in Valrico. Her husband is a deacon
at Brandon First Baptist Church, where she has been a member for over 25 years.
, helping make the cost of living affordable for military
families, and lower tax
es.
level. Her opponent in 2004 was Jean Batronie, who ran as an independent
.
asked the Commission for a $1,000,000 commitment to start a School of Law in Tampa (the main branch of Florida A&M is based in Tallahassee). Storms, attending the meeting that night, said "We can get them through law school, but we can't get them to pass the Bar." She then later claimed that she had meant that creating a historically black law school will not increase the number of minority lawyers in the state. The comment met with much controversy in the black community of Tampa, as well as with the Florida A&M alumni still living in Florida, as it was perceived that Storms made a remark that minority students were not smart enough to be capable of passing the state Bar exam.
When asked if the comment about minorities being capable to pass the Bar was offensive to her, Mary White Darby, president of the Florida A&M Tampa alumni association, responded, "How could she not offend you?" Carolyn Collins, former vice president of Florida A&M's national alumni association, said, "I don't think (Storms) is important enough. All someone has to do is look at her track record or watch her on TV and see how she responds. She has not been stable in some of her comments." After the backlash, Storms took on a more conciliatory tone and openly apologized, stating that she is not a racist, and personally tried to make amends with Thomas Scott, who at the time was the only black member of the Commission. He said of her, "She wanted me to understand that she isn't a racist, and that is not my perception. She's a very vocal person. It's just her style."
Even though her comment created controversy, Storms was adamant in not allowing Florida A&M to open a law school in Tampa. It was eventually opened in Orlando
in 2002.
in Hillsborough County so that, in her view, child abusers would not be able to continue to produce children that would become abused also. The original motion was approved by all commissioners in attendance in February 2005. When the County Attorney, Renée Lee, made it known to Storms that only the state legislature could pass such statutes, not the County Commission, she made it high priority to lobby for the bill to various legislators. Originally the bill called for sterilization to be voluntary, but between February and April 2005, Storms rewrote the bill, which would make sterilization a mandatory part of sentencing. The Florida legislature turned down Storms' bill in 2005, citing lack of time to discuss it. The bill also did not come up for discussion in 2006, meaning the ruling from the Commission in early 2005 does not have any legal standing.
, which teaches adolescents about safe sex, drugs, gangs, and family violence. The refusal for funding was passed by the board by a vote of 5-2. By doing so, the Commission cut off any aid to Planned Parenthood, as the county does not fund any other Planned Parenthood initiatives.
After Barbara Zdravecky, who oversees Planned Parenthood for 15 counties throughout central Florida, asked Storms to reconsider her proposal on July 21, 2005, Storms said she told Zdravecky, "I am pro-life and you're not...There is nothing you can say or do for me to support you. Thank you very much for your comments." After the exchange, Storms recalled smiling at Zdravecky and thanking her again for her request to reconsider. Zdravecky, however, recalls that Storms was much more blunt, saying "I am pro-life, you are pro-death" twice. Recalling her side of the events, Zdravecky said, "I have to say I was pretty shaken. I'm used to taking hits. But I was surprised at her lack of humanity...I believe anyone who professes to be a proponent of Christianity would treat me with more dignity than the way I was treated."
honoring June, which is Gay and Lesbian Pride Month. Storms heard about the complaints and decided to put to a vote to ban such book displays in county libraries. On June 15, however, she moved for the Commission to "adopt a policy that Hillsborough County government abstain from acknowledging, promoting or participating in gay pride recognition and events, little g, little p." In effect, by adding the footnote "little g, little p," the county would be abstaining from acknowledging, promoting or participating in any recognition or events for gay pride at any time, not just during "Gay and Lesbian Pride Month," with "big G and big P."
The vote was passed 5-1, with Commissioner Ken Hagan out of the room during the vote, and Kathy Castor
dissenting, saying "I think it's inappropriate for government to promote discrimination." Storms then asked that an addendum be placed upon the bill, that it cannot be repealed without a super majority vote of at least 5-2, and a public hearing. This time Hagan joined the vote and the addendum was passed 6-1, with Castor again being the only dissent. In the public hearing portion of the meeting, which occurred before the meeting, many people spoke out against the removal of book displays, not knowing of the impending vote.
Vonn New, the central Florida director of Equality Florida, an LGBT rights group, said, "I think that Hillsborough County commissioners sent a very clear message that not everyone is welcome here. I think it's shameful what the commission has done." Reverend Phyllis Hunt, the pastor at the local Metropolitan Community Church
, said, "I'm stunned, disappointed and shocked that there was zero conversation about the vote." Storms never mentioned removing gay materials from libraries, which are still included in libraries throughout Hillsborough County.
In October 2005, Kathy Castor proposed a statute which would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation
in the workplace in Hillsborough County, in both the public and private sectors. The statute, which was once law in Tampa, was repealed in 1995 and rejected in 2000. The commissioners, led by Storms, voted 5-2 to reject Castor's statute. Castor and Thomas Scott were the dissenters. Storms then asked for a motion to raise the number of votes needed from commissioners to place the issue on direct referendum to county voters from four commissioners to five.
In December 2005, Joe Redner
, who owns the nationally-known strip club Mons Venus
, filed a lawsuit against every Commission member except for Castor, alleging discrimination as a result of the June 15 vote. At the same time, Redner, who people had believed was straight, came out
on a WFLA-AM morning show broadcast. Redner and Storms had fought before, most recently in November 2005 over a donation Redner had made to needy children. Storms had been a longtime foe of Redner, as she has tried to curtail Redner's business on many occasions, due to his occupation, in Storms' words, as the "purveyor and seller of female flesh."
challenger was Iraq War veteran and Hillsborough Community College
staff member Stephen Gorham, a newcomer to politics. Shortly after her announcement to run for the Senate seat, Storms spoke out against the virulent backlash she had received in the gay community. When asked by the hosts of Bay News 9's Political Connections whether she supported homosexual people becoming foster parents or adopting, Storms replied "I don't support putting at-risk children in homes that I think are at-risk themselves." Of the response she received from Tampa's gay community, Storms said, "I've had all sorts of threats and horrible things said and done to me...things done to my church, things done to my home, and personal threats ... Ive never attacked anybody's appearance and in fact worked very closely with people who are out-of-the-closet homosexuals and they will tell you I have never done anything but treat them with dignity and respect in my personal working relationship with them."
During the summer, Shelby McIntyre of Tampa started UNbanned.org, a reference to, among other issues, Jean Batronie being banned from appearing on public-access television
cable TV for a debate, implying that station owners choose to only air programming Storms approves of, lest Storms try to convince the Commission that public-access television not receive funding by the county. Filmmaker Amy Nestor also created a video documentary, UNbanned, about the Ronda Storms gay pride vote.
Despite the campaigning against Storms by the gay community of Tampa, and Gorham hitting hard with campaign television advertisements and insisting that Storms was an "empty suit who's all style and no substance," and that "the thing about Ronda is that she only will look out for the interests of folks who look and act like her ...she pretty much ignores everyone else," Storms won the Senate seat in a close match in November 2006.
in public school science classrooms. On February 29, 2008, Storms introduced The Academic Freedom bill (SB2692) in the Florida Senate. The bill did not require any change to the current science curriculum and under the bill, evolution would still be taught as a matter of law. The bill gave express statutory right and protection for teachers to "present scientific information that is relevant to the full range of views on biological and chemical evolution." The bill did not authorize the teaching of creationism or intelligent design. Under the act, all students would still have been required to learn and be tested upon all aspects of the Science Standards, including evolution.
Its sponsor in the Florida House of Representatives
(as HB1483) is Representative Alan Hays
, who arranged for a private screening of the intelligent design promotion film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed
for Florida legislators who are to vote on the bill.
The House bill underwent substantial modification and, as amended, requires the intelligent design lesson plan "Critical Analysis of Evolution
" to be taught.
John Stemberger of the evangelical Florida Family Policy Council
, one of the drafters of the bill, said that intelligent design could not be taught, though "criticisms" of evolution could, and the teacher would have to follow the curriculum. Stein said it was the teacher who would decide what was "scientific information", and the program officer for public policy and legal affairs of the Discovery Institute
, Casey Luskin, said that intelligent design constituted "scientific information." The Miami Herald saw this as acknowledgement that the bill would make it easier to bring up religiously tinged intelligent design in public-school science classrooms. Wesley R. Elsberry
considered that this would enable the Discovery Institute to recruit sympathetic teachers to introduce religiously-motivated antievolution arguments, and lawsuits would depend on someone with standing being willing to become a plaintiff. John West
of the Discovery Institute said that "scientific information" would be determined by science teachers themselves in consultation with their science curriculum staff and their school boards. This would bypass the Florida education standards identified by science domain experts and education experts.
The American Civil Liberties Union
expressed concerns that these bills would make it easier to teach intelligent design as science in public schools:
The bill has also been criticised for its inconsistency in only protecting the freedom of teachers to discuss anti-evolution arguments, but not other controversies:
Storms was contacted by multiple teachers who had been disciplined for speaking of alternative theories, despite those critics who said retaliation never occurred. Public record shows the concerns of these teachers "I have been criticized for offering scientific evidence that goes against evolution! There is always a dark cloud looming in the back of my mind even though the evidence I provide is purely scientific. I should not have to teach under these restraints." A public school teacher of more than 35 years stated "I am a proponent of critical thinking and discussion among students in the classroom. But it has been my observation that for too long, much has been lost in our students' ability to grasp the concepts related to biological and chemical evolution. This has occurred precisely because they are not encouraged to look critically at and freely investigate the strengths and weaknesses of the subject as they would any other." Another teacher stated "my school is a majorly 'hostile' environment toward criticism of evolution... I greatly fear reprisal from... administration as I have already been completely shunned and ostracized by my science department."
Democrats later introduced a proposal to have the protection extended to sex-education, but Storms voted against it.
A 'Bill Analysis and Fiscal Impact Statement' prepared by the Senate Education Pre-K - 12 Committee staff stated that:
Florida Senate
The Florida Senate is the upper house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida. The Senate is composed of 40 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 470,032....
of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. Affiliated with the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
, she has represented the 10th District since 2006.
Storms had an eight-year tenure on the Hillsborough County
Hillsborough County, Florida
As of the census of 2000, there were 998,948 people, 391,357 households, and 255,164 families residing in the county. The population density was 951 people per square mile . There were 425,962 housing units at an average density of 405 per square mile...
Commission (1998-2006) and advanced a number of controversial issues.
Background and personal life
Ronda Newcomb was born in Des Moines, IowaDes Moines, Iowa
Des Moines is the capital and the most populous city in the US state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small portion of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines which was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857...
, into a military family, and moved around often, growing up in Germany, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
. Spending many formative years in Turkey, she used to be fluent in the Turkish language
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
, but has had "little call for the language recently."
The Newcomb family finally settled in Brandon, Florida
Brandon, Florida
Brandon is a census-designated place in Hillsborough County, Florida, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the CDP had a total population of 103,483.-Founding:...
when Ronda was 16, and she graduated from Brandon High School
Brandon High School
- History :The school originally opened in 1914 on the current site of McLane Middle School. In 1972, the school moved to its current location on Victoria Street in Brandon. The school colors are maroon and white. The school mascot is the Eagle. Brandon High is currently a "B" school on SDHC's high...
in 1983. She earned a bachelor of arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in English education from the University of South Florida
University of South Florida
The University of South Florida, also known as USF, is a member institution of the State University System of Florida, one of the state's three flagship universities for public research, and is located in Tampa, Florida, USA...
in 1988, as a S.C.A.T.T. honors graduate. For a time, she taught English at Bloomingdale High School
Bloomingdale High School
Bloomingdale High School is a senior high school located in Valrico, Florida. Bloomingdale was established in 1987. Bloomingdale's first graduating class graduated in 1989, since Hillborough County does not pull seniors from existing schools for new schools. The current principal is Mr. Mark...
in Valrico, Florida
Valrico, Florida
Valrico is an unincorporated census-designated place in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The population was 6,582 at the 2000 census.-History:...
, and later went on to pursue her Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
at the Stetson College of Law in Gulfport
Gulfport, Florida
Gulfport is a city in Pinellas County, Florida and a suburb of St. Petersburg. The population of Gulfport was 12,527 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau was 12,740. Gulfport is part of the Tampa-St...
, receiving her law degree in 1995 Cum Laude.
She married David Storms in December 1986. They have one daughter, Roxanna (born 1999) and one son, Elijah Gideon (born 2008). They currently reside in her home district in Valrico. Her husband is a deacon
Deacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
at Brandon First Baptist Church, where she has been a member for over 25 years.
Hillsborough County Commission
In all three of her elections, Storms ran on a "responsibility" platform, believing strong moral principles from voters, politicians and other public officials were key for there to be responsible government. In addition to simply acting in a "morally responsible" fashion, Storms was also a proponent of sunshine laws, believing that people can only trust government officials when they can see for themselves that they are not corrupt. Storms' other platforms included strong constituent service and family valuesFamily values
Family values are political and social beliefs that hold the nuclear family to be the essential ethical and moral unit of society. Familialism is the ideology that promotes the family and its values as an institution....
, helping make the cost of living affordable for military
Military of the United States
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...
families, and lower tax
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
es.
Elections and challengers
Storms was first elected to the Hillsborough County Commission in 1998. She was re-elected in 2002 and 2004. Her opponent in 2002 was Arlene Waldron, who claimed that Storms' comments had polarized too many constituents. Since both candidates were Republican, Storms won the election in 2002 at the state primaryPrimary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
level. Her opponent in 2004 was Jean Batronie, who ran as an independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
.
Florida A&M School of Law
In the summer of 2000, alumni from Florida A&M UniversityFlorida A&M University
Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, commonly known as Florida A&M or FAMU, is a historically black university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States, the state capital, and is one of eleven member institutions of the State University System of Florida...
asked the Commission for a $1,000,000 commitment to start a School of Law in Tampa (the main branch of Florida A&M is based in Tallahassee). Storms, attending the meeting that night, said "We can get them through law school, but we can't get them to pass the Bar." She then later claimed that she had meant that creating a historically black law school will not increase the number of minority lawyers in the state. The comment met with much controversy in the black community of Tampa, as well as with the Florida A&M alumni still living in Florida, as it was perceived that Storms made a remark that minority students were not smart enough to be capable of passing the state Bar exam.
When asked if the comment about minorities being capable to pass the Bar was offensive to her, Mary White Darby, president of the Florida A&M Tampa alumni association, responded, "How could she not offend you?" Carolyn Collins, former vice president of Florida A&M's national alumni association, said, "I don't think (Storms) is important enough. All someone has to do is look at her track record or watch her on TV and see how she responds. She has not been stable in some of her comments." After the backlash, Storms took on a more conciliatory tone and openly apologized, stating that she is not a racist, and personally tried to make amends with Thomas Scott, who at the time was the only black member of the Commission. He said of her, "She wanted me to understand that she isn't a racist, and that is not my perception. She's a very vocal person. It's just her style."
Even though her comment created controversy, Storms was adamant in not allowing Florida A&M to open a law school in Tampa. It was eventually opened in Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
in 2002.
Child abuser sterilization plan
In 2004 and 2005, Storms tried to introduce a law which would approve sterilization for men and women convicted of child abuseChild abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
in Hillsborough County so that, in her view, child abusers would not be able to continue to produce children that would become abused also. The original motion was approved by all commissioners in attendance in February 2005. When the County Attorney, Renée Lee, made it known to Storms that only the state legislature could pass such statutes, not the County Commission, she made it high priority to lobby for the bill to various legislators. Originally the bill called for sterilization to be voluntary, but between February and April 2005, Storms rewrote the bill, which would make sterilization a mandatory part of sentencing. The Florida legislature turned down Storms' bill in 2005, citing lack of time to discuss it. The bill also did not come up for discussion in 2006, meaning the ruling from the Commission in early 2005 does not have any legal standing.
Ending county funding to Planned Parenthood
In 2005, Storms called for the elimination of funding for a teenager outreach program funded by Planned ParenthoodPlanned Parenthood
Planned Parenthood Federation of America , commonly shortened to Planned Parenthood, is the U.S. affiliate of the International Planned Parenthood Federation and one of its larger members. PPFA is a non-profit organization providing reproductive health and maternal and child health services. The...
, which teaches adolescents about safe sex, drugs, gangs, and family violence. The refusal for funding was passed by the board by a vote of 5-2. By doing so, the Commission cut off any aid to Planned Parenthood, as the county does not fund any other Planned Parenthood initiatives.
After Barbara Zdravecky, who oversees Planned Parenthood for 15 counties throughout central Florida, asked Storms to reconsider her proposal on July 21, 2005, Storms said she told Zdravecky, "I am pro-life and you're not...There is nothing you can say or do for me to support you. Thank you very much for your comments." After the exchange, Storms recalled smiling at Zdravecky and thanking her again for her request to reconsider. Zdravecky, however, recalls that Storms was much more blunt, saying "I am pro-life, you are pro-death" twice. Recalling her side of the events, Zdravecky said, "I have to say I was pretty shaken. I'm used to taking hits. But I was surprised at her lack of humanity...I believe anyone who professes to be a proponent of Christianity would treat me with more dignity than the way I was treated."
Positions on gay issues
In June 2005, some library patrons complained about a book display at the West Gate Regional Library in Town 'n' CountryTown 'n' Country, Florida
Town 'n' Country is a census-designated place in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The population was 78,442 at the 2010 census.Within Town 'n' Country are located Bay Crest Park, Countryway, Rocky Creek, Sweetwater Creek.-History:...
honoring June, which is Gay and Lesbian Pride Month. Storms heard about the complaints and decided to put to a vote to ban such book displays in county libraries. On June 15, however, she moved for the Commission to "adopt a policy that Hillsborough County government abstain from acknowledging, promoting or participating in gay pride recognition and events, little g, little p." In effect, by adding the footnote "little g, little p," the county would be abstaining from acknowledging, promoting or participating in any recognition or events for gay pride at any time, not just during "Gay and Lesbian Pride Month," with "big G and big P."
The vote was passed 5-1, with Commissioner Ken Hagan out of the room during the vote, and Kathy Castor
Kathy Castor
Kathy Castor is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2007. She is a member of the Democratic Party.The district covers most of the city of Tampa, most of south St...
dissenting, saying "I think it's inappropriate for government to promote discrimination." Storms then asked that an addendum be placed upon the bill, that it cannot be repealed without a super majority vote of at least 5-2, and a public hearing. This time Hagan joined the vote and the addendum was passed 6-1, with Castor again being the only dissent. In the public hearing portion of the meeting, which occurred before the meeting, many people spoke out against the removal of book displays, not knowing of the impending vote.
Vonn New, the central Florida director of Equality Florida, an LGBT rights group, said, "I think that Hillsborough County commissioners sent a very clear message that not everyone is welcome here. I think it's shameful what the commission has done." Reverend Phyllis Hunt, the pastor at the local Metropolitan Community Church
Metropolitan Community Church
The Metropolitan Community Church or The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches is an international Protestant Christian denomination...
, said, "I'm stunned, disappointed and shocked that there was zero conversation about the vote." Storms never mentioned removing gay materials from libraries, which are still included in libraries throughout Hillsborough County.
In October 2005, Kathy Castor proposed a statute which would prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
in the workplace in Hillsborough County, in both the public and private sectors. The statute, which was once law in Tampa, was repealed in 1995 and rejected in 2000. The commissioners, led by Storms, voted 5-2 to reject Castor's statute. Castor and Thomas Scott were the dissenters. Storms then asked for a motion to raise the number of votes needed from commissioners to place the issue on direct referendum to county voters from four commissioners to five.
In December 2005, Joe Redner
Joe Redner
Joseph R. "Joe" Redner is the owner of the Mons Venus, a nude strip club in Tampa, Florida, and is known as the father of the nude lap dance....
, who owns the nationally-known strip club Mons Venus
Mons Venus
Mons Venus is a nude lap dancing strip club in Tampa, Florida.The club and its owner, Joe Redner, have frequently been engaged in legal battles with the Tampa City Council, which has tried to place restrictions on the industry for 25 years. Redner's advocacy group Voice of Freedom was originally...
, filed a lawsuit against every Commission member except for Castor, alleging discrimination as a result of the June 15 vote. At the same time, Redner, who people had believed was straight, came out
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
on a WFLA-AM morning show broadcast. Redner and Storms had fought before, most recently in November 2005 over a donation Redner had made to needy children. Storms had been a longtime foe of Redner, as she has tried to curtail Redner's business on many occasions, due to his occupation, in Storms' words, as the "purveyor and seller of female flesh."
Senate race
In April 2006, Storms announced her intention to run for the state Senate seat that was being vacated by Senate President Tom Lee. From the outset, her DemocraticDemocratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
challenger was Iraq War veteran and Hillsborough Community College
Hillsborough Community College
Hillsborough Community College is a two-year community college, located in Hillsborough County, Florida. The college has six campuses located throughout the county. Locations include: Brandon, Dale Mabry, Plant City, Ybor City, MacDill AFB, and South Shore...
staff member Stephen Gorham, a newcomer to politics. Shortly after her announcement to run for the Senate seat, Storms spoke out against the virulent backlash she had received in the gay community. When asked by the hosts of Bay News 9's Political Connections whether she supported homosexual people becoming foster parents or adopting, Storms replied "I don't support putting at-risk children in homes that I think are at-risk themselves." Of the response she received from Tampa's gay community, Storms said, "I've had all sorts of threats and horrible things said and done to me...things done to my church, things done to my home, and personal threats ... Ive never attacked anybody's appearance and in fact worked very closely with people who are out-of-the-closet homosexuals and they will tell you I have never done anything but treat them with dignity and respect in my personal working relationship with them."
During the summer, Shelby McIntyre of Tampa started UNbanned.org, a reference to, among other issues, Jean Batronie being banned from appearing on public-access television
Public-access television
Public-access television is a form of non-commercial mass media where ordinary people can create content television programming which is cablecast through cable TV specialty channels...
cable TV for a debate, implying that station owners choose to only air programming Storms approves of, lest Storms try to convince the Commission that public-access television not receive funding by the county. Filmmaker Amy Nestor also created a video documentary, UNbanned, about the Ronda Storms gay pride vote.
Despite the campaigning against Storms by the gay community of Tampa, and Gorham hitting hard with campaign television advertisements and insisting that Storms was an "empty suit who's all style and no substance," and that "the thing about Ronda is that she only will look out for the interests of folks who look and act like her ...she pretty much ignores everyone else," Storms won the Senate seat in a close match in November 2006.
"Pole Tax"
In February 2008, Storms introduced a bill that immediately became known as the Florida "Pole Tax". Florida Senate Bill 1520 would tax adult entertainment, including escorts and strippers, and use the money to fund additional services at the Department of Children and Families.Academic Freedom bill (SB2692)
Storms has had a key role in a bill promoting the teaching of intelligent designIntelligent design
Intelligent design is the proposition that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection." It is a form of creationism and a contemporary adaptation of the traditional teleological argument for...
in public school science classrooms. On February 29, 2008, Storms introduced The Academic Freedom bill (SB2692) in the Florida Senate. The bill did not require any change to the current science curriculum and under the bill, evolution would still be taught as a matter of law. The bill gave express statutory right and protection for teachers to "present scientific information that is relevant to the full range of views on biological and chemical evolution." The bill did not authorize the teaching of creationism or intelligent design. Under the act, all students would still have been required to learn and be tested upon all aspects of the Science Standards, including evolution.
Its sponsor in the Florida House of Representatives
Florida House of Representatives
The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida. The House is composed of 120 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 156,677.The House convenes at...
(as HB1483) is Representative Alan Hays
Alan Hays
D. Alan Hays is a Republican Representative in the House of Representatives of the U.S. state of Florida. Hays' district centers on Umatilla, located approximately 50 miles north of Orlando. He was elected to the House in 2004...
, who arranged for a private screening of the intelligent design promotion film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed
Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed
Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed is a 2008 documentary film, directed by Nathan Frankowski and hosted by Ben Stein. The film contends that the mainstream science establishment suppresses academics who believe they see evidence of intelligent design in nature and who criticize evidence supporting...
for Florida legislators who are to vote on the bill.
The House bill underwent substantial modification and, as amended, requires the intelligent design lesson plan "Critical Analysis of Evolution
Critical Analysis of Evolution
Critical Analysis of Evolution is the name of both a proposed high school science lesson plan promoting intelligent design and a tactic to promote design using Teach the Controversy promoted by the American think tank, Discovery Institute, originators of the intelligent design movement, as part of...
" to be taught.
John Stemberger of the evangelical Florida Family Policy Council
Family Policy Council
Family policy councils are groups that work to influence government policy on families. Most are nonprofit and volunteer-based, and most are within the United States or one particular state. However, several groups exist in the English-speaking world...
, one of the drafters of the bill, said that intelligent design could not be taught, though "criticisms" of evolution could, and the teacher would have to follow the curriculum. Stein said it was the teacher who would decide what was "scientific information", and the program officer for public policy and legal affairs of the Discovery Institute
Discovery Institute
The Discovery Institute is a non-profit public policy think tank based in Seattle, Washington, best known for its advocacy of intelligent design...
, Casey Luskin, said that intelligent design constituted "scientific information." The Miami Herald saw this as acknowledgement that the bill would make it easier to bring up religiously tinged intelligent design in public-school science classrooms. Wesley R. Elsberry
Wesley R. Elsberry
Dr. Wesley Royce Elsberry is a marine biologist with an interdisciplinary background in zoology, computer science, and wildlife and fisheries sciences. He has become involved in the creation-evolution controversy.- Biography :...
considered that this would enable the Discovery Institute to recruit sympathetic teachers to introduce religiously-motivated antievolution arguments, and lawsuits would depend on someone with standing being willing to become a plaintiff. John West
John West
The Rev. John West emigrated from England to Van Diemen's Land in 1838 as a Colonial missionary, and became pastor of an Independent Chapel in Launceston's St. John's Square in 1839. His contribution to Launceston and Australian life was great and varied promoting private and charitable...
of the Discovery Institute said that "scientific information" would be determined by science teachers themselves in consultation with their science curriculum staff and their school boards. This would bypass the Florida education standards identified by science domain experts and education experts.
The American Civil Liberties Union
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
expressed concerns that these bills would make it easier to teach intelligent design as science in public schools:
The bill has also been criticised for its inconsistency in only protecting the freedom of teachers to discuss anti-evolution arguments, but not other controversies:
Storms was contacted by multiple teachers who had been disciplined for speaking of alternative theories, despite those critics who said retaliation never occurred. Public record shows the concerns of these teachers "I have been criticized for offering scientific evidence that goes against evolution! There is always a dark cloud looming in the back of my mind even though the evidence I provide is purely scientific. I should not have to teach under these restraints." A public school teacher of more than 35 years stated "I am a proponent of critical thinking and discussion among students in the classroom. But it has been my observation that for too long, much has been lost in our students' ability to grasp the concepts related to biological and chemical evolution. This has occurred precisely because they are not encouraged to look critically at and freely investigate the strengths and weaknesses of the subject as they would any other." Another teacher stated "my school is a majorly 'hostile' environment toward criticism of evolution... I greatly fear reprisal from... administration as I have already been completely shunned and ostracized by my science department."
Democrats later introduced a proposal to have the protection extended to sex-education, but Storms voted against it.
A 'Bill Analysis and Fiscal Impact Statement' prepared by the Senate Education Pre-K - 12 Committee staff stated that:
- "Taken as a whole, the science standards [already] encourage teachers and students to discuss the full range of scientific evidence related to all science, including evolution."
- "According to the Department of Education, there has never been a case in Florida where a public school teacher or public school student has claimed that they have been discriminated against based on their science teaching or science course work."
- The bill creates ambiguity in its lack of definition of "biological and chemical evolution" and "objective scientific information", because it is silent on how this bill would affect teacher discipline over the science standards and by employing the word "may" in the context of student evaluation.
External links
- Follow the Money - Ronda Storms