DeSantis Chasing Away Everyone Decent From Florida

Even the gators are considering moving.

When I was in eighth grade, our teacher asked the class how we planned to spend our summer vacation. I mentioned that we were going to Florida for a week, and she replied skeptically, "Why?" Now, this particular teacher was a racist who once wondered aloud why Black people went to the beach at all. (She apparently saw no point if you weren't seeking a tan.) However, more than 30 years later, she might have a point about Florida.

The Sunshine State has never had the best reputation — there's that Bugs Bunny meme, after all— but Gov. Ron DeSantis has managed to turn the state into a PR sinkhole. Instead of a place filled with mildly amusing stories about a Florida Man assaulting a flamingo or a Florida Woman who hid drugs in her vagina, DeSantis's Florida is an ongoing fascist horror show.

Last weekend, after yet another DeSantis broadside against diversity,   the NAACP issued a "travel advisory" for the state, claiming that it's "openly hostile to African-Americans."

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The NAACP warns, "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." Growing up, we might've made sure we had a full tank of gas while driving through the Panhandle but we never actively avoided the entire state. Busch Gardens was fun.

CNN reports that DeSantis has banned the teaching of critical race theory, but it's more far-reaching than this. He's gone after legitimate Black history that acknowledges institutional racism. He's also sought to erase queer Black people from our historical record.

It doesn't stop there. DeSantis has signed several anti-LGBTQ bills into law. Perhaps the most odious — and that's saying something — is one that will allow doctors and health insurance companies to deny care to whomever they don't like.

According to the bill , “a health care provider or health payor has the right to opt out of participation in or payment for any health care service on the basis of a conscience-based objection,” meaning based on their moral, ethical, or religious beliefs.

Providers and insurers would face no consequences under the measure and would not be required to refer patients to a place that would provide the needed care. If they are penalized for denying care or coverage, the doctor or company can sue.

While this hateful legislation will openly promote discrimination against trans and queer people, it's also broad enough to impact ethnic minorities. No one's really safe.

Even former Republican Rep. David Jolly is not so sure he wants to stick around while DeSantis ruins Florida.

 From Time Magazine:  

“It’s in the air, it’s everywhere, it’s amazing,” says former GOP Representative David Jolly, no fan of the vibe shift. “It’s between neighbors, it’s when you go to restaurants, when you go to schools. You’re on one side or the other, and people know it.” A Florida native, Jolly is considering moving his family out of the state.

As Jolly explained on MSNBC, Florida is hardly a welcoming place these days and not just for those directly on the receiving end of DeSantis's culture war.

““Why would I want to raise my kids in an environment in which they’re shamed for embracing diversity of thought and diverse cultures?” MSNBC commentator and former Republican Florida Representative David Jolly is considering moving out of Florida with his family. (Video: MSNBC)”

— Mike Sington (@Mike Sington) 1684750019 

"'I'm a white evangelical straight male, and I feel unwelcome simply for my embrace of diversity of thought and as an ally to communities who've come under attack by Ron DeSantis," Jolly said. "His war on migrants. His war on the African-American community. His war on the LGBTQ community. His denial of science and history is true ... Why would I want to raise my kids in an environment in which they’re shamed for embracing diversity of thought and diverse cultures? I want my children to be exposed to as much diversity as possible."

Jolly's kids are two and four, and he said he wants them to grow up in an inclusive community where all families are free to "make decisions about which value set to orient our children around and ultimately give them the opportunity to make their own decisions."

Florida is estimated to keep gaining at least 845 new residents each day for the next few years. It's possible many of them are fine with DeSantis's reign of terror. Taxes are low, so the state could keep becoming older, more conservative, and more hateful. However, that reputation isn't ideal for Disney World, which invites "guests of all ages and all cultures" to "leave their worries and daily life at the edge of Disney property and enter a land of fun, fantasy and imagination."

DeSantis's rhetoric and very persona are so toxic, he makes these benign sentiments seem downright "woke." After the NAACP released its travel advisory, Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, a Democrat, tweeted to tell "... anyone and everyone considering a visit or move to Tampa that they will be welcomed with open arms. Diversity and inclusion are central to what makes Tampa one of America’s greatest and friendliest cities. That will never change, regardless of what happens in Tallahassee."

Unfortunately, a full-blown Disney villain in the Tallahassee governor's mansion is not an encouraging symbol.

[ CNN / New Republic / Newsweek ]

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