Civil Rights Group Issues Warning Against Travel to Florida
Civil Rights Group Issues Warning Against Travel to Florida
Anti-LGBTQ actions, racism cited as reasons to stay away
Gay men, lesbians, transgender Americans and others are being warned to curb non-essential travel to Florida as a result of a spate of recent actions taken by Sunshine State Republicans, led by Gov Ron DeSantis.
That's the unprecedented warning from an organization which calls itself Florida's largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for the state's LGBTQ residents.
Equality Florida took what it concedes is the “extraordinary step” of issuing the travel advisory, warning of the risks posed to the health, safety, and freedom of those considering short or long term travel, or relocation to the state.
The advisory comes in response to a “wave of safety inquiries Equality Florida has received” following the passage of laws that are hostile to the LGBTQ community, restrict access to reproductive health care, repeal gun safety laws, foment racial prejudice, and attack public education by banning books and censoring curriculum, according to a statement announcing the travel warning.
An estimated nearly 4 million people — identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual or another orientation that was not heterosexual — visited Florida just in 2019 alone.
“As an organization that has spent decades working to improve Florida’s reputation as a welcoming and inclusive place to live work and visit, it is with great sadness that we must respond to those asking if it is safe to travel to Florida or remain in the state as the laws strip away basic rights and freedoms,” said Nadine Smith, Equality Florida's executive director. “While losing conferences, and top students who have written off Florida threatens lasting damage to our state, it is most heartbreaking to hear from parents who are selling their homes and moving because school censorship, book bans and health care restrictions have made their home state less safe for their children.
“We understand everyone must weigh the risks and decide what is best for their safety, but whether you stay away, leave or remain we ask that you join us in countering these relentless attacks,” Smith added. “Help reimagine and build a Florida that is truly safe for and open to all, and where freedom is a reality, not a hollow campaign slogan.”
A recently as last year, Disney World in Orlando, Fla., opened its gates to welcome the LGBTQ flock who arrived at the world-famous theme park to celebrate Pride month.
More recently, Disney CEO Bob Iger called DeSantis, seen as a likely contender for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, “anti-business and anti-Florida.”
The infamous “Don’t Say Gay” law which bans any discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in the state's schools has made Florida synonymous with the anti-LGBTQ movement to empower government censorship and book banning across the nation, Equality Florida said.
That law, along with additional proposals being considered, has turned the state’s classrooms into political battlefields and is telegraphing to LGBTQ families and students that they are not welcome in Florida, the organization added.
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