Today

In both daytime and at nightfall, the South Beach section of Miami Beach is a major entertainment destination with hundreds of nightclubs, restaurants, boutiques and hotels. The area is popular with both American and international tourists (mainly from Canada, Latin America, Europe, Israel, the Caribbean and within the United States), with some having permanent or second homes. The large number of European tourists also explains their influence on South Beach's lax and overall tolerance of the female monokini, aka topless sunbathing, despite it being a public beach.

The reflection of South Beach's residents is evident in the various European languages, as well as Semitic languages and many other languages spoken. In 2000, 55% of residents of the city of Miami Beach spoke Spanish as a first language, while English was the first language for 33% of the population. Portuguese (mainly Brazilian Portuguese) was spoken by 3% of residents, while French (including Canadian French) was spoken by 2%, German by 1.12%, Italian 0.99%, and Russian by 0.85% of the population. Owing to the area's large Jewish and Israeli community, Yiddish was spoken by 0.81% of resident, and Hebrew by 0.74%.[10]

Another unique aesthetic attribute of South Beach is the presence of several colorful and unique stands used by South Beach's lifeguards. After Hurricane Andrew, Architect William Lane donated his design services to the city and added new stops on design tours in the form of lifeguard towers. His towers instantly became symbols of the revived City of Miami Beach.

The gay community in Miami Beach has declined in number over the years[11]. By 2010 most LGBT populations moved up north into the Broward County area[12]. Anti-gay attacks and Miami Beach Police brutality against gay men[13] are a couple of most disturbing factors attributing to the exodus of LGBT culture, residents, and tourists. Ironically, the new gay friendly mayor of 2007, Matti Herrera Bower, came together with increased corruption and homophobia in the city's police department[14][15] [16]. Also, since the new mayor took office, an ordinance to close parks and beaches where gay men congregate was executed[17], which led to an ongoing harassment of single men in general[18]. As a result, Miami Beach male tourists regardless of sexual orientation have increasingly became targets for the Miami Beach Police Department which resulted in wrongful arrests and deaths[19].

In 2005, a local gay-friendly radio station, Party 93.1 FM changed its format from dance to rock. As a result, Issues Over the Rainbow, South Florida's only gay-oriented FM talk show was cancelled[20]. Gone along with the show - the station's sponsorships of the Miami Gay & Lesbian Film Festival; Care Resource's annual White Party gala to fight AIDS; and Winter Party, a five-day fundraiser in early March that benefits South Florida gay charities[21].

In February of 2010, ACLU announced that it will sue the city of Miami Beach for an ongoing targeting and arrests of gay men in public[22]. According to the ACLU, Miami Beach has a history of arresting gay men for simply looking “too gay”[23].