Anita Bryant

Anita Jane Bryant (born March 25, 1940) is an American singer and political activist. She scored four Top 40 hits in the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s, including "Paper Roses", which reached #5 on the charts. She was also a former Miss Oklahoma beauty pageant winner, and was a brand ambassador for the Florida Citrus Commission (which marketed orange juice) from 1969 to 1979. At the peak of her popularity, Bryant was voted the most admired woman in America three years in a row by Good Housekeeping magazine and one of the Most influential Women in America in Gallup's most admired man and woman poll. In the 1970s, Bryant became known as an outspoken opponent of gay rights in the US. In 1977, she ran the "Save Our Children" campaign to repeal a local ordinance in Dade County, Florida that prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. This involvement significantly damaged her popularity and career in show business while inadvertently promoting the cause of gay rights.