'Blood on his hands': Sobbing Florida lawmaker blames DeSantis' 'woke war' for Jacksonville shooting
Florida state Rep. Angie Nixon (D) attributes attacks on people of color in her state to Gov. Ron DeSantis' war against "woke."
For months, DeSantis campaigned for president by touting his record banning the teaching about slavery, discussing the Civil Rights movement, and other history involving Black Americans. He bragged that Florida was where "woke" came to die.
The term "woke" was often used by the Black community to mean "stay aware," whether it was aware of what was around your daily life or aware of what was happening in politics, policy, and your community. It has evolved to mean being aware of the systemic problems people face as a result of their race. But when asked about what it actually means, those against it have had trouble explaining what it is.
When that has been the debate for the past year with the governor supporting the death of "woke," Nixon explained it translates into violence. A gunman attempted to kill students at a historically Black Christian college, but was run off of campus by a security guard. So, he turned to a local Dollar Store in the neighborhood and opened fire on the Black shoppers there. His racist manifesto was emailed to the police, his parents and media before the shooting.
"Look, at the end of the day, the governor has blood on his hands," Nixon told MSNBC on Sunday. "He has had an attack, an all-out attack on the Black community with his woke policies, which we know very well, was nothing more than a dog whistle to get folks riled up in the way in which it just happened yesterday. I listened to him for the first time with that statement, my blood is literally boiling."
She explained that in the last few legislative sessions, she and other Black representatives tried to tell DeSantis how his rhetoric would end up getting people hurt. That's what happened, she said.
"This is absurd, it is ridiculous, he is one of the causes of this," she continued. "This is an agenda that he has been pushing since he has gotten into office. He showed us who he was when he initially ran for governor saying do not monkey this around. Do not monkey this up. That type of statement. It only leads to things like this."
In the wake of DeSantis' war, she said, Republicans around the state are following suit, "doing everything to continually attack Black lives. They are doing everything to erase Black history. They are feeding our children propaganda. All that does is lead to the devaluation of Black lives. This guy had no respect for the community. He had no respect, and my colleagues who are in leadership need to stand up and stop the mansplaining, and the gaslighting, and the racist rhetoric, that they spew time and time again on the House floor, and the Senate chambers."
She began to get emotional, her voice quivering, but she wouldn't back down.
She cited the recent bill Florida lawmakers passed honoring Rush Limbaugh by naming a roadway after him. He was well-known for being racist, homophobic and misogynist.
"Then we have a very vindictive governor, who, if we speak out, we are punished as elected officials," Nixon continued. "I along with Representative [Travaris] McCurdy up on that House floor when [DeSantis] unconstitutionally came after two congressional black districts to remove them. I was placed in a basement with rats because I spoke up for my community. I am more than angry. And now that these families — they no longer have their family members. Gov. DeSantis and the Republican Party of Florida are doing nothing but hurting us. And I am angry. I will not continue to sit idly by."
She implored lawmakers on both sides to come together to stop the hateful rhetoric and community members to hold their lawmakers accountable.
See her emotional plea in the video below or at the link here.
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