Gov. Ron DeSantis failed to include LGBTQ protections within an executive order that reaffirmed other existing protections and denied discrimination.
Executive order 1910 was issued hours after DeSantis was sworn into office on Tuesday and is titled, “Reaffirming Commitment to Diversity in Government.” It repeatedly rejects the idea of discrimination against “age, sex, race, color, religion, national origin, marital status or disability,” but fails to mention anything regarding the topic of gender identity or sexuality orientation.
Joe Saunders, senior political director for Equality Florida, said in a press release that he is “deeply” disappointed in this omission, especially after Sen. Rick Scott, previous governor of Florida, failed to keep his promise of adding protections for the LGBTQ community after the shooting at the Pulse nightclub.
“It’s hard to believe that Gov. DeSantis and his staff are not aware of the LGBTQ communities call for these protections following the Pulse tragedy and therefore it is hard to interpret this as anything less than a purposeful omission,” said Saunders. “As governors across the country establish these critical protections for LGBTQ families, this order draws a stark contrast. We look forward to a dialogue with Gov. DeSantis about why LGBTQ employees have been omitted from this critical policy and how he plans to make sure that all Floridians, regardless of who they are or who they love, can be protected from discrimination.”
Contrastingly, bipartisan governors across the country are including LGBTQ protections in their executive orders. Governors from Wisconsin, Ohio and Michigan have all signed executive orders that include protections of LGBTQ persons.
The office of Gov. DeSantis was not available for immediate comment as of Wednesday afternoon.
