Category: Florida

Florida Ports See Increase in Cargo, Cruise Lines Still Recovering

Steve Stewart

According to an industry report, cargo handled by Florida ports was up over 100% in 2021 when compared to 2020.

The Florida Ports Council released the 2021-2022 Seaport Mission Plan on Wednesday which provides detailed information related to Florida’s 15 seaports.

The report notes that, from a total tonnage perspective, year-over-year two-way, inbound and outbound cargo, rose 118.3% in 2021 compared to 2020.

Florida seaports are an important contributor to the state’s economy. Currently, Florida seaports generate nearly 900,000 direct and indirect jobs and contribute $117.6 billion in economic value to the state through cargo and cruise activities.

The report notes that, due to West Coast labor issues and lingering global supply-chain issues, “a re-alignment of global trade routes is clearly underway, and Florida ports are strategically positioned to take maximum advantage of this opportunity.”

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Former Florida Secretary of State Releases First Political Ad

Grant Holcomb

Former Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee released her first political ad of the campaign season. Lee is running for Florida’s 15th Congressional District which encompasses northeast Tampa communities and stretches up to Zephyrhills, and across to Lakeland.

In the ad, Lee touts her track record for implementing election integrity laws that were passed by the Florida Legislature and signed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. She also described herself as a “conservative that will battle Biden’s leftist agenda,” will continue to support building a wall on the southern border started by former President Donald J. Trump (R), and defend gun rights.

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Gov. Ron DeSantis Issues Executive Order Designed to Lower Costs of Prescription Drugs

Steve Stewart

On Friday, Governor Ron DeSantis issued an Executive Order (22-164) focused on lowering the costs of prescription drugs for Floridians by promoting transparency. The order will ensure reforms are in place to hold Pharmacy Benefits Managers (PBMs) accountable when managing prescription drug benefits for insurance companies. PBMs are third-party administrators of prescription drug programs.

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the executive order at a press conference at Cape Coral High School.

“This executive order is really probably the first time Florida as a state has taken action to ensure that we’re saving money for Floridians regarding the middlemen and what happens with the prescription drug programs,” DeSantis said. “I think it’s going to be very, very meaningful.”

“For far too long leaders have chosen the path of inaction, rather than action, and fallen victim to a pharmaceutical system driven by drug companies rather than consumers,” said Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Simone Marstiller. “Fortunately, Governor DeSantis leads with principle, always putting Floridians first and today’s actions will further this commitment by providing insight into the FDA’s review process and all agency health care contracts through the end of the decade.”

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Florida State Senator Lofts Abortion Protection by Constitutional Amendment

Grant Holcomb

Florida State Sen. Jason Pizzo (D-Miami) floated the idea of protected abortion access by way of Florida’s constitutional amendment process. His tweet comes in the wake of the overturning of the landmark Roe v. Wade case last month by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) in the Dobbs v. Jackson ruling.

The ruling from SCOTUS did not institute a federal ban, but allowed individual states to determine their own stance on abortion access.

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Florida Seeking Abortion Law Resolution at State Supreme Court

Grant Holcomb

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody’s (R) office is requesting that the legal fight between pro-abortion groups and the state be fast-tracked to the Florida Supreme Court. The 15-week abortion ban in question, was recently put back into effect after an appeal from the state.

Leon County Circuit Judge John Cooper issued a temporary injunction Tuesday morning to block the law, but the appeal to Cooper’s decision is what led to its reinstatement.

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Florida School Districts Continue to Face Teacher Shortages

Steve Stewart

The 2022-23 K-12 school year begins in less than two months and Florida school districts are facing teacher shortages.

As of this week, Duval County Public Schools reported 529 vacancies for certified teachers, up 23% — nearly 100 positions — compared to the start of last school year. This year’s vacancies are almost double the number Duval saw at the beginning of 2020-21 school year.

In addition, Orange County Public Schools lists over 200 K-12 teacher openings and Brevard County Public Schools lists 235 teacher vacancies.

And while the numbers are daunting they should not be surprising.

According to surveys by the Florida Education Association(FEA), the number of teacher vacancies have increased a 104% since August 2019. In August 2019, the FEA reported there were 2,135 advertised positions. This number increased to 2,962 in August 2020 and ballooned to 4,359 by January 2022.

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Nikki Fried’s Republican Donations Complicate Attacks on Charlie Crist

Steve Stewart

Less than two months out from the Democratic primary for Florida governor, Fried’s attacks on Charlie Crist for his time as a Republican has become complicated due to Fried’s own campaign donations to GOP candidates.

Crist, who served as a Republican governor in Florida from 2007 to 20011, changed parties and won the Democratic nomination for governor in 2014 and lost to then-Gov. Rick Scott. Crist now serves as a Democratic member of Congress.

Fried’s message to Democratic voters has attempted to take advantage of Crist’s past ties to Republican causes.

“They’re tired of recycled politicians especially people that haven’t delivered for Democrats ever,” Fried stated. She also said that Crist needs to be held “accountable” for his past “destructive” record assisting Republicans.

Specifically, Fried has highlighted Crist’s past positions on guns and abortion.

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City of Orlando Apologizes for Errant Independence Day Message

Grant Holcomb

The City of Orlando issued an apology for their Independence Day message saying that “we can’t blame them” if there were residents of their city who felt there was not much to celebrate. The city posted the original announcement to Twitter but has since deleted it and replaced it with an apology.

The apology stated that they “understand these words offended some” who read it.

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Florida AG, FTC Taking Legal Action to Shut Down COVID-19 Scam Targeting Minority-Owned Small Businesses

The Center Square

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody and the Federal Trade Commission have taken legal action to shut down what they say was a fraudulent scheme perpetrated by a company targeting minority-owned small businesses.

They filed a joint complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida where Judge Marcia Morales Howard issued a temporary restraining order against the company, preventing it from doing any more business.

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Florida Rep. Anna Eskamani Endorses Divisive Independence Day Message

Steve Stewart

On Saturday, Florida House Rep. Anna Eskamani endorsed a divisive July 4th email message sent out by the City of Orlando. Eskamani’s approval of the message came after the City of Orlando apologized for the original message, which was critical of the United States.

The original email published on July 1 – which has since been deleted from Orlando’s official Twitter account – stated, “A lot of people probably do not want to celebrate our nation right now, and we can’t blame them. When there is so much division hate, and unrest, why on earth would you want to have a party celebrating any of it?”

Christina Pushaw, the spokesperson for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, replied to the message. Pushaw tweeted,  “Yikes. City of Orlando, is this your official position on our country and on 4th of July?”

In addition, a local police union responded to the message.

‘The members of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 25 are proud Americans who will continue to serve with Courage, Pride and Commitment to uphold their oath to defend our community and this country. We do not share the same views as the City of Orlando and find their comments inflammatory and in poor taste,’ the statement from the police union read.

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Florida’s Revenue Collections 21 Percent over Projections, Consumer Confidence Rebounds

Steve Stewart

Florida’s Office of Economic and Demographic Research (EDR) reported that general revenue collections for May 2022 were $741.8 million (21.0 percent) over the estimates made in January 2022. In addition, consumer confidence among Floridians rebounded in June while national consumer sentiment fell sharply.

Revenues generated from the sales of automobiles was the highest above the projections among the six sales tax categories coming in $148.75 million (31.1 percent) over the May estimate.

Also contributing to the higher than projected sales tax revenue were the Tourism and Business categories, both surpassing estimates by over 26%.

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Florida Asks Judge to Dismiss Lawsuit Filed Against Parental Rights Bill

Steve Stewart

Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office filed a 60-page motion Monday arguing that U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor should dismiss a case filed by LGBTQ-advocacy groups Equality Florida and Family Equality related to the Parental Rights in Education legislation. 

The law (HB 1557) prevents instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation in kindergarten through third grade and requires that such instruction be “age-appropriate … in accordance with state academic standards” in older grades.

Attorney General Ashley Moody’s office called the provisions of the bill a “modest limitation … neutrally allowing all parents, no matter their views, to introduce those sensitive topics to their children as they see fit.” 

Monday’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit raised a series of arguments, including that the plaintiffs did not have legal standing and that the state has the right to set curriculums for public schools. It also took issue with the “Don’t Say Gay” moniker.

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Americans for Prosperity Gives 31 Florida Legislators an A-Plus

Steve Stewart

Americans for Prosperity-Florida (AFP-FL)  unveiled its 2022 Florida Legislative Scorecard Wednesday highlighting Florida’s elected officials who, according to AFP-FL, “championed solutions that will create more opportunity for all Floridians while standing up against harmful public policy change.”

AFP-FL stated that the scorecard “lets you know which lawmakers have championed policies that empower all Floridians to realize their potential, help others, and achieve their version of the American dream. It’s a tool for activists, the media, and the general public to learn how each senator and representative has voted and hold them to account for their decisions.”

According to the scorecard, 31 lawmakers scored an A+, 72 received an A, 35 received a B, 17 received a C, 3 received a D, and 2 lawmakers –Rep. Jervonte Edmonds and Sen. Perry Thurston— received an F.

The Florida lawmakers to receive an A+ in 2022 are all Republicans.

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Florida Orange Production Up, Cost of Orange Juice Below Other Food Prices Despite Inflation

The Center Square

There’s a silver lining to some of the hardship Florida citrus producers have faced over the past several years. Their projected crop production is an estimated 2 million box increase from the previous month, the cost for consumers to purchase Florida orange juice is lower than other food despite inflation, and their congressional delegation is advancing a bill to reform FDA standards to help growers.

Florida’s orange production is expected to surpass more than 40 million boxes in the 2021-2022 season, according to a USDA May production forecast, an increase of 2 million boxes from its April forecast.

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Florida Progressives Abstain from Endorsing in Democrat Primary

Grant Holcomb

The Democratic Progressive Caucus of Florida has opted to not offer their endorsement for the 2022 Democrat gubernatorial primary. The two most likely candidates to achieve the party nomination are Congressman Charlie Crist (D-FL-13) and Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried (D).

The caucus said that they both feel the two candidates are better options than incumbent Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), but they maintained that the two Democrat candidates did not model a progressive candidate quite close enough.

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Citing Crime, Chicago’s Richest Man to Move $22 Billion Company to Florida

Steve Stewart

Ken Griffin, Chicago’s richest man and founder of the hedge-fund Citadel, recently announced in a letter to employees that his company would be relocating to Miami.

“I am excited to share with you that Citadel is moving its global headquarters to Miami,” the letter read. “Miami is a vibrant, growing metropolis that embodies the American Dream. I am excited to have recently moved to Miami with my family and look forward to rapidly expanding Citadel in a city so rich in diversity and abounding with energy.”

Griffin’s decision comes less than a year after he told an audience at the Economic Club of Chicago that he was considering moving the business because of crime in the city.

A report indicated that over the past five years, using per capita information, that Chicago far outpaced Miami in homicides, sexual assaults, and robberies, while Miami outpaced Chicago in aggravated battery.

Griffin, 53, is originally from Daytona Beach, and went to high school in Boca Raton, but founded Citadel in Chicago 30 years ago. Griffin has been a frequent critic of rising crime in Chicago, and that appears to be a factor in the decision to move Citadel to Miami.

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Crist Calls for Kavanaugh, Gorsuch to Be Impeached over Abortion Ruling

The Center Square

Democratic Congressman Charlie Crist, the former Republican governor of Florida who’s running as a Democrat hoping to defeat incumbent Gov. Ron DeSantis in November, said Friday that Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh should be impeached if they lied under oath during their Senate confirmation hearings.

Crist’s call comes after Gorsuch and Kavanaugh joined in a majority U.S. Supreme Court ruling to overturn two landmark abortion cases – Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. The decision returns decisions on the legality of abortion back to the states.

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Tennessee Lawmakers Call for Safe Return of Marine Who Attempted Suicide in Venezuelan Jail

Peter D'Abrosca

Elected officials in Tennessee are calling for the safe return of a U.S. Marine who is jailed in Venezuela after that Marine attempted to take his own life over the weekend. 

“The safe return of Matthew Heath must be the highest priority for the White House and State Department,” said Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN-03). “Our government and the Venezuelan government must come to an agreement to medically evacuate Matthew. His life is in danger, and we cannot delay.”

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Former Florida Gubernatorial Candidate Andrew Gillum Indicted by Feds

Steve Stewart

Former Tallahassee Mayor and Florida gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum has been indicted on multiple charges connected to campaign contribution fraud before and during his 2018 run for governor of Florida. Gillum lost to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida unsealed the 21-count indictment on Wednesday. One of Gillum’s closest advisers, Sharon Lettman-Hicks, also was charged in the 21-count indictment. Gillum, 42, and Lettman-Hicks, 53, were arrested on Wednesday and were scheduled to have their first appearance Wednesday afternoon at the U.S. Courthouse in Tallahassee.

The 26-page indictment indicates that the Gillum investigation was part of the comprehensive corruption probe that used undercover agents to get close to some of Tallahassee’s biggest movers and shakers. Former Tallahassee Mayor and City Commissioner Scott Maddox and his associate Paige Carter-Smith, along with Tallahassee businessman J.T. Burnette were recently sentenced to prison as a result of the probe.

The indictment alleges that between 2016 and 2019, defendants Gillum and Lettman-Hicks conspired to commit wire fraud, by unlawfully soliciting and obtaining funds from various entities and individuals through false and fraudulent promises and representations that the funds would be used for a legitimate purpose.

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DeSantis Responds to Furor over COVID Shots for Children: ‘The White House Is Lying’

Steve Stewart

The DeSantis Administration is pushing back on comments by the White House press secretary and media reports that claim Florida has reversed course related to COVID shots for children. Florida made news as the only state not to pre-order the COVID vaccine for children six months to five years of age.

The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the vaccines for emergency use on June 17 for children as young as 6 months and the CDC recommended everyone ages 6 months and older get vaccinated against COVID-19.

Jeremy Redfern, press secretary for the Florida Department of Health, said the department “chose not to participate” in the vaccination program because the state health department is not following federal public health recommendations.

Governor Ron DeSantis also commented on the situation.

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Senator Marco Rubio Scores Another Law Enforcement Endorsement

Steve Stewart

This past Friday, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio announced he had received the endorsement of the Florida Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) in his U.S. Senate contest against probable opponent, Democratic Rep. Val Demings, a former law enforcement official.

The endorsement comes amid a statewide TV commercial campaign by Demings that seeks to highlight her law enforcement background – which includes 27 years as an Orlando police officer, including  four years as the Orlando Chief of Police – and to defuse attempts to tie her to the 2020 “defund the police” messages pushed by some liberal Democrats.

“In the Senate, I’ll protect Florida from bad ideas,” Demings says in the new 30-second TV spot. “Defunding the police: That’s just crazy.”

However, Rubio has been critical of Demings’ vote on legislation that includes provisions that would strip police of qualified immunity. Qualified immunity protects law enforcement officers against lawsuits over what they do on the job.

A Rubio campaign video shows law enforcement officers expressing outrage over Demings’ vote.

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Sheriff’s Office Says Disney Worker Arrested in Child Sex Crackdown

Admin

A Florida sheriff’s department says it arrested a Disney employee as part of a larger sting in which it nabbed a dozen suspects in a child sex crackdown.

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release on Friday that in early June it “conducted a two-week-long undercover operation ‘Operation Child Protector II’ during which detectives posed as children on social media platforms, mobile apps, and online dating sites to investigate those who prey upon and travel to meet children for unlawful sexual activity.”

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DeSantis Keeps Promise, Launches Education Agenda for School Board Candidates

Steve Stewart

On Thursday, Gov. Ron DeSantis launched an education agenda focused on influencing local school board races in the 2022 election cycle.

Titled “The DeSantis Education Agenda: Putting Parents First, Protecting Parents’ Rights,”, the policy focuses on issues related to student success, parental rights and curriculum transparency.”

According to the website, “The DeSantis Education Agenda is a student-first, parent-centered initiative focused on setting Florida’s children up for success, ensuring parental rights in education, and combatting the woke agenda from infiltrating public schools….This statewide agenda is for school board candidates and school board members who are committed to advancing these priorities at the local school board level.”

In a statement provided to The Federalist, DeSantis championed the launch of the agenda, saying that “Florida has delivered the most student-focused, parent-centered education agenda in the nation” at a time when “curriculum in states around the country are being used as opportunities to indoctrinate innocent children.”

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Florida School Districts Scramble to Implement Provisions of the Parental Rights in Education Legislation

Steve Stewart

The recently passed Parental Rights in Education bill has Florida school districts scrambling to change policies and remove books that might violate the provisions of the legislation.

Notably, the Palm Beach Post reported that Palm Beach County school officials are ending the use of the “Genderbread Person” infographic. The infographic was used to explain the differences between anatomical sex, gender expression, gender identity, sexual attraction and romantic attraction.

Palm Beach Schools Superintendent Mike Burke said the infographic was “problematic because it gave the impression that we were targeting a younger audience” ……I’m not sure it was the most valuable piece of our curriculum.”

Part of the process in Palm Beach included sending questionnaires to teachers seeking information about materials used in classroom activities. If the questionnaire revealed potential violations, teachers were asked to send the material to school officials for review.

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Al Lawson Files to Run for Florida’s 2nd Congressional District After Redistricting Fight

Grant Holcomb

Congressman Al Lawson (D-FL-5) has filed to run in Florida’s second congressional district against incumbent Rep. Neal Dunn (R-FL-2). Lawson currently holds the seat for district five, but the months-long congressional redistricting fight to preserve the boundaries of district five was secured in favor of the new maps earlier this month. Therefore, Lawson is seeking to unseat Dunn.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has backed the redistricting process including proposing the boundary changes for district five, claiming that it was an unconstitutional, racial-based gerrymander. District five, as of right now, snakes from Tallahassee across North Florida to Jacksonville’s northside. It comprises a majority minority district.

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DeSantis: ‘Blockade’ of Supreme Court by Pro-Choice Protesters Is an ‘Insurrection’

Steve Stewart

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis appeared on Fox & Friends Monday morning and labeled the potential  “blockade” of the Supreme Court by pro-choice groups as an “insurrection.”

DeSantis was referring to the publicized plans of  ShutDownDC,  a left-wing group which announced it was hosting a “shut down SCOTUS” protest on June 13, with plans to “blockade” the streets surrounding the Supreme Court in light of a potential decision that could overturn Roe v. Wade.

The group announced the protest plans on their website. “On June 13, one of the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision days, we plan to blockade the streets around the Supreme Court to rise up for the transformative change that our communities need,” the website states. “Right now our political system is in crisis. Times of crisis can either be opportunities to break through the inertia and win transformational change or they can be opportunities for the establishment to further entrench the status quo.”

DeSantis said on Fox & Friends that group is “trying to change the outcome of decisions that they are concerned that they don’t like and that is totally antithetical to the rule of law…That would be considered an insurrection: to stop a court from functioning, and yet they seem to be able to get away with a lot more than if the shoe were on the other foot.”

“I think that we have a rule of law in this country and you don’t just get to have a mob descend on a Supreme Court Justice’s house or try to impede the operations of government because there may be a decision you don’t like,” DeSantis added.

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Florida Chamber of Commerce Releases Legislative Report Card

Grant Holcomb

The Florida Chamber of Commerce, one of Florida’s largest trade associations, released their annual Legislative Report Card and also announced their Distinguished Advocates for the 2022 Legislative Session. The chamber describes itself as an organization that supports free enterprise policies and has historically backed Republicans over Democrats.

The chamber said that their calculated average grade for all of Florida’s lawmakers was a 68 percent, equating to a “D.”

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Environmentalists Applaud DeSantis Veto of Everglades Related Bill

Steve Stewart

Supported by environmentalists, Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) vetoed a controversial measure (SB2508) tied to Everglades restoration last week. In the veto letter, DeSantis noted the possibility that the legislation could have a negative impact on Everglades restoration projects.

“While the bill that was ultimately passed by the Legislature is an improvement over what was initially filed, SB 2508 still creates unnecessary and redundant regulatory hurdles which may compromise the timely execution and implementation of Everglades restoration projects, water control plans and regulation schedules,” DeSantis wrote in the letter submitted to Secretary of State Cord Byrd.

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Governor DeSantis Responds to ‘Leftist’ Call for Special Session on Gun Laws

Steve Stewart

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis made it clear that he does not support the call for a special session on gun laws as proposed by several legislators.

Last week State Rep. Joseph Geller, D-Miami-Dade, sent a letter to all state lawmakers and the Florida secretary of state in an attempt to have a special session called to address gun violence.

In order for a special session to be granted, 60% of the lawmakers in the house and senate would have to approve the request. The governor could also issue a proclamation calling for the special session.

On Wednesday, DeSantis responded to the request by noting that Florida has adopted a number laws to  address gun violence.

DeSantis said, “What we’ve done in this budget is have record funding, continued record funding for school safety and school security as well as mental health. We’ve done three-quarters of a billion dollars just for school security, just since 2019, so we took the Stoneman Douglas recommendations, we put those into effect in both policy and with resources and it’s made a really, really big difference.”

DeSantis then took a shot at the “leftist.”

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Florida Conservatives Fear Censorship over Radio Station Buyout

Grant Holcomb

A new group backed by Democrats and leftist initiative funder George Soros has purchased a historically conservative Spanish language radio station in South Florida as part of an 18-station buyout. The station being bought out is Miami’s Radio Mambí.

The buyout is being headed up by Jess Morales Rocketto, a former Hillary for America and AFL-CIO employee, and Stephanie Valencia, a former White House staffer during the Obama administration.

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Florida’s 3rd Grade Reading Scores Show Troubling Trend

Grant Holcomb

Florida’s latest third grade reading scores report has shown only one quarter of them are able to read proficiently. The latest numbers from the Florida Department of Education were released recently and the numbers indicate struggling students across the state based on performance on the Florida Standards Assessment (FSA).

The state education department defines “proficiently” as scoring a four or five on a scale of one through five. A level three is considered passing, and just over half of Florida’s students passed at 53 percent.

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DeSantis Signs School Safety Bill

Grant Holcomb

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) signed a school safety bill Tuesday that the Florida Legislature passed during its Special Legislative Session. The bill is built off of the recommendations of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission designed to make schools safer and offer resources to students and school employees.

DeSantis signed the bill on the heels of the Florida Freedom First budget where over $140 million was designated for mental health and approximately $210 million for school safety.

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DeSantis Explains His Response to Disney’s ‘Ridiculous Course of Action’ Related to the Parental Rights in Education Bill

Steve Stewart

During a recent interview with David Rubin, Gov. DeSantis explained his actions related to Disney and their position on the Parental Rights in Education bill.

DeSantis told Rubin that early in the 2022 Florida legislative session he became aware that activists would be pushing a false narrative about the Parental Rights in Education legislation around the “Don’t Say Gay” slogan.

DeSantis said, “I started fighting back against them because they were just lying to people and it’s offensive when they’re lying and so we start fighting back and I would literally have these reporters, I’d say ‘okay where does it say that in the bill?’ okay it doesn’t say that in the bill what does it say?”

DeSantis then discussed Disney’s decision to get involved with opposing the legislation.

DeSantis said, “Then you had this situation where you had the corporations, mostly Disney, deciding to get involved and I think people look at that they’re like first of all I don’t know why they got involved in this, it was a huge mistake for them …. I think they’ve lost 60 billion in market cap since they got involved.”

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Florida Lawmaker to Introduce Bill Criminalizing ‘Drag Sex Shows’ for Children

Admin

Republican Florida state Rep. Anthony Sabatini plans to introduce legislation criminalizing the act of bringing children to sex shows and drag shows, he announced Monday.

The bill, if passed, would make it a felony for an adult to bring a child to a sexually-themed drag show and allow authorities to terminate parental rights over violations, Sabatini told The Daily Caller News Foundation. The announcement came in response to a Palm Beach event titled “Pride on the Block: Drag Show for Kids!”

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LGBTQ+ Pride Night Backfires on Tampa Bay Rays

Steve Stewart

The Tampa Bay Rays’ LGBTQ Pride Night recently made headlines due to players choosing not to participate in the event. The promotional event featured rainbow-colored logos added to the teams’ jerseys and caps. In addition, the Rays organization included members of the LGBTQ+ community in pregame events, gave out mini pride flags and offered special ticket packages.

“Our Pride Nights continue to grow both in terms of visibility and participation,” Rays president Matt Silverman said. “By doing this, we extend an invitation not just for this game but for all of our games that the LGBTQ+ community is invited, welcomed and celebrated.”

However, players were given the option to opt out and five decided not to participate by removing the logo and wearing a standard hat. Those who did not participate included pitchers Jason Adam, Jalen Beeks, Brooks Raley, Jeffrey Springs and Ryan Thompson.

Adam appeared to be the spokesperson for the group who provided a statement to the Tampa Bay Times after the game.

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