Pride Fury as Florida Bridges Light Up Red, White, and Blue Through the Summer

Sunshine Skyway Bridge, Tampa Bay
X/Florida DOT
Hannah Knudsen

Florida bridges will be lit up with the colors red, white, and blue Memorial Day through Labor Day, meaning there will be no “pride month” participation in the form of rainbow colors displayed on Florida bridges in 2024.

Secretary of the Florida Department of Transportation Jared Perdue made the announcement this month, highlighting the state’s “2024 Florida Freedom Summer,” which includes a series of tax-free items associated with summer activities.

“As Floridians prepare for Freedom Summer, Florida’s bridges will follow suit, illuminating in red, white, and blue from Memorial Day through Labor Day!” he wrote.

“Thanks to the leadership of @GovRonDeSantis, Florida continues to be the freest state in the nation,” he added:

This means that, unlike previous years, there will not be rainbow displays on Florida bridges, which the far-left has used to recognize what society has deemed “pride month,” spanning the entirety of the summer kick-off month of June. This has drawn ire from many far-left LGBT activists and members of the mainstream media.

“Not much freedom going on in Florida when you can’t even allow LGBTQ Floridians to feel seen and respected with the traditional Pride colors lit up,” one X user wrote, unable to explain just how, exactly, not displaying rainbow colors on a bridge equates to the absence of freedom.

“You’re not fooling anyone with what you’re doing and why,” the user added.

“Sure Florida is free for everyone who isn’t LGBTQ or any other marginalized communities,” another X user commented, again failing to explain how bridges displaying the colors of the American flag are anti-freedom.

“Why are you scared of rainbows?” another asked as another added, “You mean the fascist homophobic governor @GovRonDeSantis not the freest by any means.”

Several media outlets also highlighted this move. The Tampa Bay Times noted that the Sunshine Skyway will not light up in colors of the rainbow “due to a single Manatee County commissioner who has expressed disapproval of requests for light displays honoring Pride and Gun Violence Awareness Day.” That local battle essentially ended with the DeSantis administration’s announcement, essentially overriding a vote on the commission.

Per the Times:

The FDOT made no public announcement about the Manatee County objection, which came from Commission Chairman Mike Rahn. Instead, the agency announced that for 2024 it will have a display of red, white and blue lights on bridges that will run all summer, from Memorial Day to Labor Day. And it’s not just the Skyway. All Florida bridges will be draped in patriotic colors for the summer, so no Pride bridge lighting elsewhere either in June.

Local10 quoted Todd Delmay, executive director of SAVE LGBT, who believes there is a “petty motive” behind the decision.

“There appears to be a contradiction,” Delmay said of officials claiming that Florida is free.

“Clearly, there’s a very petty motive here to take away these very obvious symbols of an LGBTQIA2S+ community that’s been under attack,” he said.

It still remains unclear how not displaying the rainbow — originally a sign of God’s promise not to flood the earth again — is a form of attack against LGBTQIA2S+.

Advocate.com put the decision this way:

The decision was announced as the DeSantis administration also touted a sales tax holiday and free access to state parks on Memorial Day weekend. So despite the governor’s abysmal record on LGBTQ+ rights, the decision didn’t seem to outwardly be motivated by a chance to pre-empt Pride.

And the Washington Post said:

A number of bridges across the state prominently display rainbow colors in honor of Pride Month in June, among other celebrations throughout the year. Many see the order to display only red, white and blue as another move against the LGBTQ+ community, which has been targeted by a number of DeSantis-backed laws in recent years.

A columnist on USA Today framed the decision this way: “Gov. Ron DeSantis bravely saves Floridians from exposure to nonpatriotic bridges.”

Regardless of opinions, Floridians and travelers can expect patriotic displays on popular bridges throughout the Sunshine State, which broke records, attracting 140.6 million visitors in 2023 alone.

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