WILTON MANORS, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis made his thoughts quite clear when speaking on the issue of rainbow crosswalks being removed across the state.
“I think it’s just a change in policy, and we don’t want to be in a situation where we say, ‘Well, that mural is fine and that’s not, then you get into a content thing and all that. No, we’re just not doing it. We’re out of that business in Florida,” he said.
The Florida Department of Transportation says crosswalks must be painted to code: No murals. No flags. Nothing extra. All in the name of safety.
But many aren’t buying it.
“Power in numbers, and I think we have to show it’s not just a nine-foot drag queen in feathers that cares about this, it’s community members, voting community members that care about it,” said activist Eric Swanson.
Monday, multiple protests were held in Broward County as demonstrators said the rainbow crosswalks are safe and symbolic.
“What statistics do you have that they aren’t safe?” asked Swanson. “Because they’re out there and they are safer than what people are claiming.”
Still, the governor is standing firm, backing the state’s decision.
FDOT Secretary Jared Perdue agrees.
“We have a new law, we have a new standard and we’re simply implementing that standard across the board,” Perdue said. “Pavement art is not allowed, and we’re removing everything that’s not compliant with state, federal standards and that’s the approach that we’re taking.”
This goes beyond rainbow crosswalks. In Tampa, FDOT will be painting over a Back the Blue law enforcement flag.
Last month, Hialeah officials announced they wanted to paint dominoes on their crosswalks. City officials have not responded to Local 10 News’ requests for comment as of the time of this story’s publication.
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