1977–1980 Florida orange juice boycott

1977–1980 Florida orange juice boycott

An anti-Bryant campaign button in support of a boycott of the Save Our Children campaign for which she served as spokesperson
Date	January 18, 1977 – June 7, 1980 (3 years, 4 months, 2 weeks and 6 days) [1]
Also known as	Gaycott
Cause	LGBT rights in the United States
Target	Anita Bryant
Outcome	Firing of Anita Bryant from the Florida Citrus Commission

The Florida orange juice boycott from 1977 to 1980 was an LGBT protest against the anti-gay activism of Anita Bryant and the Save Our Children campaign. The boycott lasted from January 1977 until Bryant's firing from the Florida Citrus Commission in 1980.

Background

On June 7, 1977, Anita Bryant and her campaign successfully repealed Miami's anti-discrimination ordinance in a referendum won by a margin of 69 to 31 percent. However, the gay community retaliated against her by forming the Coalition for Human Rights and the Miami Victory Campaign. At the time, Bryant was most famous for her advertising jingle for orange juice companies. ^[2]

Boycott

The Coalition for Human Rights and the Miami Victory Campaign organized a boycott of orange juice in opposition to Bryant and her campaign. ^[3] Gay bars all over North America stopped serving screwdrivers ^[4] and replaced them with the "Anita Bryant Cocktail", which was made with vodka and apple juice. ^[5] Additionally, merchandise such as buttons, bumper stickers, and T-shirts with slogans like "A day without human rights is like a day without sunshine" were sold to push the anti-discrimination movement further. Sales and proceeds went to gay rights activists to help fund their fight against Bryant and her campaign. ^[5]

In San Francisco, the San Francisco Tavern Guild distributed signs that read, "To promote human rights, this establishment does not serve Florida orange juice or orange juice from concentrate." ^[6] According to historian Emily S. Johnson, the boycott brought together LGBT rights activists across the country who could "boycott Florida orange juice in a show of solidarity". ^[6]

The Florida Citrus Commission publicly supported Bryant; however, the company's publicity director told the Associated Press , "The whole Anita thing is a mess. No matter what we decide, we're only going to lose. I wish she would just resign." ^[7] The boycott was supported by celebrities, including Jane Fonda, Paul Williams, and Vincent Price, who joked in a television interview that Oscar Wilde's A Woman of No Importance referred to her. ^{[5] [8] [9]}

In 1980, the commission canceled Bryant's 10-year contract after a public and acrimonious divorce, though Bryant claimed she had been "blacklisted". ^{[6] [7]}

References

1. "Florida Gay Rights Activists Boycott Orange Juice, 1977-1980". Global Nonviolent Action Database. Swarthmore University. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
2. Birdsall, John. "The Orange Juice Boycott That Changed America" . Retrieved 14 August 2023.
3. Bryant, Anita; Green, Bob (1978). At Any Cost. Grand Rapids, Michigan, US: Fleming H. Revell. ISBN   978-0800709402.
4. "ANITA SUCKS [ORANGES] · Documented | Digital Collections of The History Project". Historyproject.omeka.net. Retrieved 2018-05-03.
5. Marcus, Eric (2002). Making Gay History: The Half-Century Fight for Lesbian and Gay Equal Rights. New York City: Harper. ISBN   978-0-06-093391-3.
6. Johnson, Emily S. "The myth that has shaped the Christian Right and the LGBTQ rights movement for four decades". Made by History. The Washington Post. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
7. Bridges, C.A. "Before Target, there was Anita Bryant's orange juice: 3 famous boycotts in Florida history". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved 14 August 2023.
8. Panisch, Alex (14 June 2012). "Catching Up With Paul Williams". Out.com. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
9. murphy, colin (2015-10-25). "Vincent Price's Daughter Confirms Her Famous Father Was Bisexual" . Retrieved 2017-08-04.