GAINESVILLE- On Tuesday, August 13, the Alachua County Commission voted 4-0 to add employment, housing and public accommodation protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents.

“We are thrilled Alachua County has joined the 24 other Florida cities and counties as well as 84% of the nation’s largest employers that already have these protections,” said Mallory Garner-Wells, Public Policy Director for Equality Florida. “Now, all residents of Alachua County will be protected against discrimination based on who they are.”

The LGBT rights group Equality Florida sent a letter this week to the Mayor of St. Petersburg and city council asking that the city suspend its relationship with St. Petersburg, Russia because of recent anti-gay violence and legislation.

We interviewed Nadine Smith, executive director of Equality Florida.

Note: St. Pete's relationship with its Russian namesake is not an official Sister City designation; St. Pete's Sister City is Takamatsu, Japan.

As host to Florida’s largest gay pride festival, St. Petersburg has prided itself on its inclusiveness and lauded its progressive employment policies for same-sex couples.

Now, a gay rights group wants the city to sever its ties with its namesake city because of recent antigay legislation passed in Russia.

Many Floridians felt underwhelmed after the DOMA appeal. After all, Florida wasn’t even close to legalizing gay marriage so, nothing short of uprooting our lives and moving to California, how could this affect us? Equality Florida—the premiere gay rights organization in Florida—understood this dilemma and crafted a project as a solution: Get Engaged!.

As LGBTQ Americans across the country continue to celebrate the June 26 Supreme Court ruling striking down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), the immediate future of marriage equality in Florida looks bleak.  Even so, a call to action is growing state-wide to bring about change.