According to her family, Anita Bryant, a former beauty queen and pop singer from the 1960s, passed away on December 16 at the age of 84. Her career included serving as a spokesman for Florida oranges in the early 1970s and subsequently as an evangelical opponent of homosexual rights in the same decade.
Anita Bryant Day, as she was known outside of the public eye, passed away at home last month in Edmond, Oklahoma, surrounded by family and friends, according to the family's obituary, which appeared in her local newspaper, the Oklahoman.
Bryant was one of the most divisive personalities in America during her prime. While many Christian conservatives hailed her as a hero, many in the entertainment industry denigrated her for opposing what she perceived to be a homosexual takeover of American society.
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The Complex Legacy of Anita Bryant: A Retrospective
Before she made such statements, she was most recognized for her roles in Florida orange advertisements that popularized the tagline "Breakfast without orange juice is like a day without sunshine" and other variations on it. Even though she started recording religious music after easy-listening sounds were outdated during the rock period, those commercials overshadowed her long-dormant pop singing career.
During her less contentious years, Bryant made some notable public appearances, such as singing at the 1968 Democratic and Republican conventions, participating in Bob Hope's holiday tours for troops serving overseas for seven consecutive years, singing "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" at the 1971 Super Bowl, and performing the anthem as a musical eulogy for President Lyndon Johnson at his funeral in 1973 after previously performing for him on multiple occasions.
Bryant started spearheading a "Save Our Children" campaign in 1977 with the goal of overturning a Miami-Dade County rule that forbade discrimination based on sexual orientation. That year, the ordinance was successfully overturned by a public vote thanks to the campaign. (Restoration did not occur until 1998.) Her opposition to these laws made her a prominent symbol of the religious right and the public adversary of social liberals and the homosexual community for the following three years. For decades to come, her claim that she "loves homosexuals, but hates their sin" would become a type of evangelical catchphrase and a widely ridiculed joke among the future LGBTQ community.
When she was featured on the monthly "Playboy Interview" in 1978, her opinions were further promoted by the national media. "For her first 36 years, Anita Bryant was the stereotypical embodiment of the American dream; hers was a rags-to-riches saga in the best Horatio Alger tradition," the magazine said at the start, summarizing the abrupt change in her image. She led a cozy and notably uncontroversial existence. All of that abruptly and drastically altered last year; the political battle destroyed her idyllic routine. Bryant took the lead in an effort to have the Metropolitan Dade County Commission rescind a rule that would effectively require competent gays to be employed as teachers in both private and parochial schools. The campaign that followed was framed along traditional good-versus-evil lines. Under the guise of her ad hoc organization, Save Our Children, Bryant enlisted a number of conservative politicians and religious leaders. Her argument was straightforward: homosexuality is a sin, and the American family and way of life would vanish if gays were allowed to glorify their "deviate lifestyle" in Miami-area classrooms. Bryant has established himself as a mainstay in American politics.
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Anita Bryant: A Life of Music and Activism
Bryant stated in the Playboy interview that until the Florida law that infuriated her, she had not given homosexuality much attention. "The only reason I became involved was because they were requesting preferential treatment that was against Florida state law and, more importantly, God's law. According to God, one small transgression leads to another, and the consequences of sin are death. The depravity doesn't end with the gay deed. After that, it results in—what is the term?—sadomasochism. As time passes, it just becomes worse. The more you fall down the sewer, the more perverse it gets, the more you use drugs and drink, and the more rotten it gets, the more gays commit suicide. The worst issue is that a lot of married guys with kids who aren't happy in their marriage are seeking fulfillment in homosexual clubs these days; if they're not careful, they'll be completely sucked into it.
As she gained notoriety in that field, her advocacy spread well beyond Florida. She supported California's notorious Briggs Initiative, which sought to terminate public school workers for expressing pro-gay remarks at the expense of their jobs. The initiative was opposed by liberals, including former California Governor Ronald Reagan, and Bryant's power diminished after it was defeated by a significant majority of voters.
Wolski Kala
According to her family, Anita Bryant, a former beauty queen and pop singer from the 1960s, passed away on December 16 at the age of 84. Her career included serving as a spokesman for Florida oranges in the early 1970s and subsequently as an evangelical opponent of homosexual rights in the same decade.
Anita Bryant Day, as she was known outside of the public eye, passed away at home last month in Edmond, Oklahoma, surrounded by family and friends, according to the family's obituary, which appeared in her local newspaper, the Oklahoman.
Bryant was one of the most divisive personalities in America during her prime. While many Christian conservatives hailed her as a hero, many in the entertainment industry denigrated her for opposing what she perceived to be a homosexual takeover of American society.
Read Also: Which actress has the best figure in Hollywood?
The Complex Legacy of Anita Bryant: A Retrospective
Before she made such statements, she was most recognized for her roles in Florida orange advertisements that popularized the tagline "Breakfast without orange juice is like a day without sunshine" and other variations on it. Even though she started recording religious music after easy-listening sounds were outdated during the rock period, those commercials overshadowed her long-dormant pop singing career.
During her less contentious years, Bryant made some notable public appearances, such as singing at the 1968 Democratic and Republican conventions, participating in Bob Hope's holiday tours for troops serving overseas for seven consecutive years, singing "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" at the 1971 Super Bowl, and performing the anthem as a musical eulogy for President Lyndon Johnson at his funeral in 1973 after previously performing for him on multiple occasions.
Bryant started spearheading a "Save Our Children" campaign in 1977 with the goal of overturning a Miami-Dade County rule that forbade discrimination based on sexual orientation. That year, the ordinance was successfully overturned by a public vote thanks to the campaign. (Restoration did not occur until 1998.) Her opposition to these laws made her a prominent symbol of the religious right and the public adversary of social liberals and the homosexual community for the following three years. For decades to come, her claim that she "loves homosexuals, but hates their sin" would become a type of evangelical catchphrase and a widely ridiculed joke among the future LGBTQ community.
When she was featured on the monthly "Playboy Interview" in 1978, her opinions were further promoted by the national media. "For her first 36 years, Anita Bryant was the stereotypical embodiment of the American dream; hers was a rags-to-riches saga in the best Horatio Alger tradition," the magazine said at the start, summarizing the abrupt change in her image. She led a cozy and notably uncontroversial existence. All of that abruptly and drastically altered last year; the political battle destroyed her idyllic routine. Bryant took the lead in an effort to have the Metropolitan Dade County Commission rescind a rule that would effectively require competent gays to be employed as teachers in both private and parochial schools. The campaign that followed was framed along traditional good-versus-evil lines. Under the guise of her ad hoc organization, Save Our Children, Bryant enlisted a number of conservative politicians and religious leaders. Her argument was straightforward: homosexuality is a sin, and the American family and way of life would vanish if gays were allowed to glorify their "deviate lifestyle" in Miami-area classrooms. Bryant has established himself as a mainstay in American politics.
Must Know: Who is the most nominated actor actress in Golden Globe Awards history?
Anita Bryant: A Life of Music and Activism
Bryant stated in the Playboy interview that until the Florida law that infuriated her, she had not given homosexuality much attention. "The only reason I became involved was because they were requesting preferential treatment that was against Florida state law and, more importantly, God's law. According to God, one small transgression leads to another, and the consequences of sin are death. The depravity doesn't end with the gay deed. After that, it results in—what is the term?—sadomasochism. As time passes, it just becomes worse. The more you fall down the sewer, the more perverse it gets, the more you use drugs and drink, and the more rotten it gets, the more gays commit suicide. The worst issue is that a lot of married guys with kids who aren't happy in their marriage are seeking fulfillment in homosexual clubs these days; if they're not careful, they'll be completely sucked into it.
As she gained notoriety in that field, her advocacy spread well beyond Florida. She supported California's notorious Briggs Initiative, which sought to terminate public school workers for expressing pro-gay remarks at the expense of their jobs. The initiative was opposed by liberals, including former California Governor Ronald Reagan, and Bryant's power diminished after it was defeated by a significant majority of voters.