Ron DeSantis Wants To Remind You He's Still A Horrible Bigoted Autocrat
New law lets governor remove local elected officials for 'promoting' Pride or DEI.
In its perpetual battle to out-crazy Texas (and Idaho, which often punches above its weight in rightwing crazy), the Florida Legislature on Tuesday passed a bill aimed at banning local governments from doing diversity, equity, and inclusion, including (and especially) a prohibition on anything “promoting” or “adopting” activities that recognize the existence of LGBTQ+ people. Assuming DeSantis signs it — I mean, come on — the law would go into effect January 1, 2027, and would immediately eliminate any local laws, ordinances, programs, policies, or refrigerator magnets related to “DEI,” including those related to LGBTQ+ people.
The bill includes a provision allowing residents to sue local governments, too, which could result in cities having to defend themselves at great cost from some prick who has a tizzy over seeing a Pride flag or anything with a rainbow on it. For all we know, it might lead to lawsuits seeking damage payments from women employed by municipal governments if they’re spotted driving a Subaru Forester or playing softball.
The Lege even included an extra bit of power we’re sure DeSantis would love to have, but which he can’t exercise because term limits make this his last year in office, barring a coup. But his successor as governor will be able to remove from office any elected official they deem to be in violation of the new anti-DEI law, just by signing an executive order to suspend them, no court or other hearing necessary. A suspended local official could appeal to the Florida Senate, but good luck, since it has a GOP supermajority.
As Erin Reed explains, the bill, Florida SB 1134, is a nasty dog’s breakfast of a thing, deliberately vague so it can be waved threateningly at local leaders who might defy the whims of a Republican governor (don’t be silly, Democrats won’t be allowed to win that office ever again).
It states that any city or county office or official acting in their official capacity cannot “promote or adopt training, programming, or activities designed or implemented with reference to race, color, sex, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation.” It also mandates that local governments not use funds for “contractors, employees, vendors, volunteers, or agents” who will “ascribe to, study, or be instructed” using materials with reference to the same identity categories, which could impact community health centers, hospitals, and nonprofit services in cities across the state.
The bill grudgingly allows for recognition of federal holidays, so until the Lege comes up with something creative, municipal events for Martin Luther King Day and Juneteenth will be tolerated. Maybe the authors expect Donald Trump to eliminate those at the federal level.
SB 1134 doesn’t specifically ban Pride events, but its broad prohibition on use of public funds for anything construed to “promote” LGBTQ+ anything is sweeping enough that it could “prohibit cities from displaying Pride flags on government property, sending official city delegations to march in parades, posting Pride events on city websites or social media, issuing proclamations recognizing Pride Month, or providing city resources like water trucks and staff time to support festivals.”
Equality Florida issued a statement condemning the bill as “dangerous, vague by design, and part of a broader political agenda of censorship and government overreach” that was “intended to bully local governments and have a chilling effect on how they celebrate and support the diverse communities they serve.”
The statement noted that as the bill moved through the Lege, opponents were at least able to win concessions that should “protect and preserve the Pulse Memorial in Orlando,” as well as an amendment that allows local governments to at least issue permits for Pride festivals, though the bill imposes restrictions on supporting or promoting them.
The law could potentially play hell with St. Pete Pride, the state’s biggest Pride festival and a magnet for tourism from all over the southeast US.
According to St. Pete Pride President Dr. Byron Green-Calisch, roughly $300,000 of the festival’s approximately $1 million budget comes from the City of St. Petersburg.
If the bill becomes law, cities could lose the ability to provide that funding.
“Unfortunately, I am disappointed, but not surprised,” Green-Calisch said.
Green-Calisch said St. Pete Pride will survive, as long as supporters know how to love, but that it might end up looking and feeling different if the city government is barred from providing support. Get ready for lawsuits, damn it.
The Florida Lege is really feeling its oats this week; in addition to SB 1134, the Lege also passed a bill Wednesday that will prohibit local governments, public school districts, and state universities from adopting net-zero policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It would even prohibit local governments from purchasing vehicles or equipment “based solely on the types or sources of fuel used by, or used in the production of, such goods,” so no electric cars, buses, or even leaf blowers, you monstrous liberal do-gooders. You will burn fossil fuels and you will LOVE IT.
The bill’s sponsors claim it will still allow municipalities and schools to pursue clean energy for the purpose of saving money, as long as they don’t mention the heresy of climate change, which despite being true is anathema in Florida law. But fear of violating the law could very well prevent cities and schools from installing solar panels or other clean energy tech, just to avoid punishment.
The law’s passage has already led one sustainability and engineering firm to rethink its plans to expand its presence in Florida, so that alone is probably cause for celebration. We’re not sure what DeSantis has planned for the signing ceremony. Maybe a parade of diesel pickups with their exhausts modified to “roll coal”?
[Erin in the Morning / WTSP / Tampa Bay Times (archive link)]
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Yes, yes, "Subaru Forester" is spelled with only one R, and is driven by none. Fixed!
Like most bigots, these bigots are also MORONS OF THE GRAMMAR: You can't "ascribe to" an idea or abstract noun, idiots--you CAN "subscribe" to those things, but you have to ascribe something to something or someone else.
It's called a TRANSitive verb. Don't sue me--you're the ones who used it. The wrong damn way.