Who is Welcome or Safe in Florida?

Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis bragged, when he was elected to a second term, that Florida is where “woke goes to die.” Florida is viewed by many – from the right and the left – as the political epicenter of the right-wing world view. As a result, Florida is perceived as an increasingly unsafe place to live in or visit by many groups of people who are not part of the majority white, male, heterosexual, Christian power structure. Some examples of the feeling of being unwelcome or unsafe are:

• The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) recently issued a travel advisory for Florida telling people that Florida has become “hostile toward African Americans” under the leadership of Gov. Ron DeSantis. The board voted unanimously to issue the travel advisory, saying the decision “comes in direct response to Governor Ron DeSantis’ aggressive attempts to erase Black history and to restrict diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in Florida schools.” They further stated: “Before traveling to Florida, please understand that the state of Florida devalues and marginalizes the contributions of, and the challenges faced by African Americans and other communities of color.”
• The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) has denounced the anti-immigrant measures signed into law by Governor DeSantis in Florida and has warned Latinos traveling in Florida with family members to be cautious if they encounter law enforcement. “We do not doubt that if Abuelita or Tia is with us and we are profiled, DeSantis’ enforcement regulations will treat us like criminals, transporting a dangerous person who only wanted to visit family or enjoy Disneyworld,” Latin American truck drivers are reportedly planning a service boycott of Florida in response to new anti-immigrant legislation that yakes effect July 1, 2023.
• Equality Florida,  the largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community,  “took the extraordinary step of issuing a 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 move 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. “
• The League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) has denounced the anti-immigrant measures signed into law by Governor DeSantis in Florida and has warned Latinos traveling in Florida with family members to be cautious if they encounter law enforcement. “We do not doubt that if Abuelita or Tia is with us and we are profiled, DeSantis’ enforcement regulations will treat us like criminals, transporting a dangerous person who only wanted to visit family or enjoy Disneyworld,” Latin American truck drivers are reportedly planning a service boycott of Florida in response to new anti-immigrant legislation that yakes effect July 1, 2023.
• Equality Florida,  the largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community,  “took the extraordinary step of issuing a 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 move 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. “
• The Anti Defamation League noted in March of 2023 that Antisemitic incidents In Florida more than doubled since 2020 and they released a report in September 2022 entitled Hate in the Sunshine State: Extremism & Antisemitism in Florida, 2020-2022.
• The Florida Alliance of Planned Parenthood Affiliates, Inc. has deplored the recently legislated six-week abortion ban. stating that: “From Ron DeSantis down, many lawmakers in Florida will stop at nothing to take away our freedom to make decisions about our own bodies. Despite clear evidence of harm, they have doubled down on abortion bans to deprive millions of people of essential health care. These policy decisions disproportionately hurt Black and Latino people, LGBTQ+ people, and people with low incomes due to systemic racism and discrimination.”
• A Former Navy Commander, speaking at the Martin County School Board where his son attends school, warned of religious fascism in Florida as library book bans have increased, stating that: “Religious fanatics, who wouldn’t even let women be educated, flew planes into the World Trade Center and my Pentagon. I spent the last decade of my naval career fighting religious fascism abroad. I never thought I’d have to fight it right here in the United States of America.” He was joined by centenarian Grace Linn, who also spoke out eloquently against the book bans, noting that “Ban books and burning books are the same. Both are done for the same reason: fear of knowledge. Fear is not freedom. Fear is not liberty. Fear is control.”
• The Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Florida), the state’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, on May 16, 2023 condemned the distribution of white supremacist flyers found in a Naples Park, FL neighborhood.
• Chinese Immigrants are now suing Florida over a new law banning them from buying land in Florida. Florida’s new property law, SB 264, restricts most Chinese citizens — and most citizens of Cuba, Venezuela, Syria, Iran, Russia, and North Korea — from purchasing homes in the state. Unless the courts act, the law will take effect on July 1, 2023.

These are just some of the many groups of people who are being made to feel unwelcome and unsafe in Florida. For a more complete listing of what is happening, check out The Politics of Exclusion, Hate, and Fear in Florida.