Florida removes rainbow crosswalk memorial pulse nightclub victim

The Rainbow Crosswalk commemorates the victims of the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida, Florida, has been mapped by the state’s Department of Transportation.

The crosswalk was part of a larger memorial for 49 people killed after the Gunners opened fire in a gay nightclub in June 2016, the largest mass shooting in U.S. history at the time.

Orlando mayoral partner Buddy Dyer said his removal was “destructive”, calling it “brutal political act” on social media.

“This crosswalk not only improves the safety and visibility of the large number of pedestrians visiting the memorial, but also serves as a visual reminder of Orlando’s commitment to commemorate the lives of 49 people,” he said.

Openly gay state Senator Carlos Guillermo Smith said the Florida Department of Transportation “deprived the rainbow of the city’s crosswalk late at night.”

In a video of him standing on X in front of the repainted crosswalk, he said the department “illegally destroyed city property without providing city notification or approval.”

“I can’t believe it [Florida Governor Ron] The DeSantis government has engaged in this hostile act against the city of Orlando. ” he said.

“We do not allow us to be directed for political purposes” in response to the video.

The BBC contacted the office of Governor DeSantis, who declined to comment and pointed out the governor’s position on X.

Ron DeSantis, a well-known Republican figure who ran for president in 2024, has been criticized for his views and positions on the LGBTQ issue.

In 2023, he pushed for the expansion of Florida’s so-called “don’t say homosexual” laws, prohibiting public schools from teaching about sex education and gender identity.

Florida’s Transportation Bureau has been notifying cities in recent months that they could lose shipping funds unless they delete the rainbow-colored crosswalk.

In June, the agency released a memorandum about X, which bans sidewalks or surface art related to “social, political or ideological information or images”, adding that they “do not apply to traffic control purposes.”

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy sent a letter to all 50 states in July urging them to remove political statements from the road.

“Political slogans have no place on public roads,” he said in a social media post. “Taxpayers expect their dollar to fund safe streets, rather than rainbow crosswalks.”