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An outdated ban on gay adoptions was officially pulled from the books Thursday evening. As Matt Galka tells us, Florida’s first openly gay legislator helped make it happen, but the fight is most likely not over.

Representative David Richardson – Florida’s first openly gay lawmaker – remembers watching plenty of hate speech growing up.

“I was a teenager, I remember watching on the TV as Anita Bryant railed against the gay community and feeling how difficult life was going to be,” said Rep. Richardson (D-Miami Beach).

He’s celebrating a win this week, though. Richardson helped amend an adoption bill to officially repeal a ban on same sex couple adoption.  The ban hasn’t been enforced since 2010 when a judge found it unconstitutional.

“So it was very personal for me, and no one could have guessed that I would be the one here some 38 years later to repeal a statue that effects me so personally,” said Rep. Richardson.

The Governor – who made a brief appearance outside the House chambers Friday – signed the bill into law. He said in a statement he’d like to see religious freedom protections allowing faith based adoption agencies to refuse service to gay couples to be put into place. The measure failed in 2015.

Florida House leaders said they’d continue to pursue religious freedom protections in the future.

“I’m hopeful that we can bring that back next year and protect some of those religious agencies that do in fact provide that service,” said House Speaker Steve Crisafulli.

Rep. Dennis Baxley supports religious freedom and said the Governor was in a tough position.

“We certainly don’t want to discriminate against anyone, but how do you ask organizations that are faith based to compromise their moral belief?” said Rep. Baxley (R-Ocala).

But equal rights supporters say that any sort of discrimination – faithbased or otherwise – is still unconstitutional.

The repeal was just one part of a bill that looks to promote adoptions by providing incentives for agencies and state employees who choose to adopt.