FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — When LGBTQ Floridians, their families and their supporters arrive in the state capital Monday to start two days of what organizers are calling pride, passion and resistance, they’re more likely to encounter a brick wall of opposition than a welcome mat and an open door.
In the last two years, the rhetoric and policies flowing from Gov. Ron DeSantis, his administration, and the Republican-controlled state Legislature have left the LGBTQ community, along with family members, friends and employers anxious as they adjust to a new reality and wait to see what comes next from Tallahassee.
“They have just decided to demonize our community. They’re doing it with great success, and no one is stopping them,” said Rand Hoch, founder and president of the LGBTQ rights group Palm Beach County Human Rights Council, which for much of its 35-year existence has worked with — and endorsed — both Democrats and Republicans.
