Florida is one of the most popular states in the US for tourists, and tourism is one of its biggest industries. More than 137.5 million tourists visited Florida last year, marking a return to pre-pandemic levels, according to Visit Florida, the state’s tourism promotion agency. Tourism supports 1.6 million fulltime and part-time jobs, and visitors spent US$98.8 billion in Florida in 2019, the last year figures are available.
Several of Florida’s Democratic mayors were quick to say Sunday that their cities welcomed diversity and inclusion.
“EVERYONE is always welcome and will be treated with dignity and respect,” tweeted Mayor Ken Welch of St Petersburg in a message echoed by the mayor across the bay in Tampa.
“That will never change, regardless of what happens in Tallahassee,” tweeted Mayor Jane Castor of Tampa.
The NAACP’s decision comes after the DeSantis’ administration in January rejected the College Board’s Advanced Placement African American Studies course. DeSantis and Republican lawmakers also have pressed forward with measures that ban state colleges from having programs on diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as critical race theory, and also passed the Stop WOKE Act that restricts certain race-based conversations and analysis in schools and businesses.
In its warning for Hispanic travellers considering a visit to Florida, LULAC cited a new law that prohibits local governments from providing money to organisations that issue identification cards to people illegally in the country and invalidates out-of-state driver’s licences held by undocumented immigrants, among other things.
The law also requires hospitals that accept Medicaid to include a citizenship question on intake forms, which critics have said is intended to dissuade immigrants living in the US illegally from seeking medical care.
“The actions taken by Governor DeSantis have created a shadow of fear within communities across the state,” said Lydia Medrano, a LULAC vice president for the Southeast region.
Recent efforts to limit discussion on LGBTQ topics in schools, the removal of books with gay characters from school libraries, a recent ban on gender-affirming care for minors, new restrictions on abortion access and a law allowing Floridians to carry concealed guns without a permit contributed to Equality Florida’s warning.
“Taken in their totality, Florida’s slate of laws and policies targeting basic freedoms and rights pose a serious risk to the health and safety of those travelling to the state,” Equality Florida’s advisory said.
