FLORIDA — The Florida National Organization for Women (NOW) strongly condemns members of the House and Senate who voted in favor of HB 1365 / SB 1530, legislation that aims to outlaw people currently experiencing homelessness from sleeping in public spaces. The bill threatens local governments to designate a specific property for “public camping and sleeping” for people experiencing homelessness, an idea reminiscent of the internment camps of World War II. The legislation appears to incentivize residents and business owners to sue local governments if they do not comply with the legislation, providing for all legal fees for the litigant are awarded if the resident or business owner prevails in a civil action.

This legislation may disproportionately affect people of color, LGBTQ+ youth, veterans, and disabled people, who experience higher rates of homelessness. Furthermore, the bill would create a database to track homeless individuals and their needs, which may violate a constitutional right to privacy.

Debbie Deland, President of the Florida National Organization for Women (NOW), stated, “The Republican supermajority in Tallahassee, in lockstep with Governor DeSantis, is attempting to disappear another very vulnerable population. We strongly condemn all members of the Florida legislature who voted in favor of this inhuman and ineffective method to reduce the visibility of our most vulnerable citizens. Preventing people experiencing homelessness from life-saving activities such as camping and sleeping in public places is atrocious and unconstitutional.”

“Instead of ameliorating the conditions that are creating such hardships and trauma, the legislature has proposed a measure that makes it significantly worse. They avoid addressing the real problems – a lack of affordable housing and public resources, and soaring insurance rates. Many people without access to housing end up incarcerated where they are further traumatized and treated like criminals, simply for the “crime” of being poor. Criminalization is not only an cruel and inhuman method of addressing homelessness, it is also the most expensive and ineffective. Housing First programs are the only solution proven to reduce homelessness, while also being the most cost-effective and compassionate.”

URGENT CALL TO ACTION: Please inform yourselves and others as to which political platform supports your concerns and shares your values. Please make the effort to make sure everyone who can vote, does so. Our democracy depends on it more than ever!

A gay Tampa man was shot and killed at a dog park earlier this month, just one day after he sent a video with a friend sharing that another man was harassing him.

John Walter Lay was killed on Feb. 2 at the West Lake dog park, where he had multiple negative encounters with Gerald Declan Radford. They were previously part of the same friend group at the park, but due to political differences, they split off.

The Tampa Bay Times reports that Radford was “harassing him at the park for months, hurling homophobic slurs and threatening him.” On Feb. 1, Lay recorded a “video diary” of the incident, stating he was told to do so by police.

“[Radford] comes up to me and screams at me, ‘You’re gonna die, you’re gonna die,’” he said. “And I asked him to just leave me alone.”

To date, Radford has not been arrested. In a news release put out by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, “there are no impending charges” and the case has been turned over to the State Attorney’s Office.

The Tampa Bay Times shared that Radford texted a reporter, “I was attacked. I defended myself. End of story.”

Albert Darlington, Lay’s friend and landlord, told the newspaper that before he even knew that Lay had been killed, Radford texted him a selfie with a bruised eye, saying, “I’m so sorry to tell you, Walt attacked me and I had to defend myself. I never thought he would go for me. I really sorry. I really had no choice he was too crazy.”

Darlington and other friends aren’t buying it.

“For over a year, Dec has done nothing but harass Walt. He screams and hollers and calls him a f—-t every time he gets to the dog park,” Darlington told the Times. “He’ll sit there, and he’ll say, ‘I’d like to punch him right in the f–king mouth’ … and it has gotten worse and worse and worse.”

Paul Gumpert told WTSP that he “100%” believes it’s a hate crime “because he didn’t do it to anyone else.”

According to court records, Radford has had three civil cases in the county; two for an animal at large and one for an aggressive or vicious animal.

Nadine Smith, the executive director of Equality Florida, said, “It is impossible to see this senseless death outside the context of the hateful anti-LGBTQ rhetoric from the highest office in our state, and the emboldened bigotry it has inspired … We need to know this investigation is not marred by bias. Good people have to speak out on this hateful rhetoric.”

The Florida National Organization for Women also spoke up, sharing in a release, “The lack of swift action from authorities to bring charges against Gerald Declan Radford, the shooter, is deeply concerning. We demand that the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office expedite their investigation and ensure justice is served for Lay and his loved ones. No one should fear for their safety or face violence because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. LGBTQ+ rights are human rights.”

Read the original article on Out SFL here: https://outsfl.com/local/gay-tampa-man-shot-killed-at-dog-park-no-arrests-made 

Senate Bill 184 Has Passed on the Senate Floor, Allowing for a Lack of Accountability and Transparency by Enforcement

Florida – The Florida National Organization for Women (NOW) strongly condemns the Senate’s passage of Senate Bill 184, which seeks to hinder accountability and transparency by law enforcement officers. The bill creates a first-degree misdemeanor charge for anyone who “impedes” police or other first responders when they’re working. This bill not only endangers Floridians’ First Amendment right to film the police on public property but it also raises alarm with its vague definitions and specified 14-foot distance requirements.

Denying citizens in Florida the right to scrutinize law enforcement officers and first responders allows them to be effectively silenced and creates the potential for arbitrary enforcement and confusion.

Florida NOW calls on all citizens to stand against Senate Bill 184 and contact their Representatives in the House to express their opposition. We must protect the First Amendment rights of individuals and defend the core aspects of our democracy that call for transparency and accountability from public officials. Together, we can ensure that individuals are not severely hurt by this bill, and related bills, that criminalize the rightful assessment of police and first responders.

For media inquiries, please contact Florida NOW President Debbie Deland at 407-234-6408.