A rainbow crosswalk outside the Pulse nightclub in Orlando was painted over by state officials in the early hours of Thursday, in a move criticized by Mayor Buddy Dyer as a “cruel political act.”
In a statement shared on social media, the Democratic mayor said he was “devastated to learn that overnight the state painted over the Pulse Memorial crosswalk on Orange Avenue.”
The crosswalk was installed in 2017 as part of a memorial honoring the victims of the June 2016 mass shooting, when a gunman opened fire during the LGBTQ club’s popular Latin-themed night, killing 49 people and injuring more than 50.
“This callous action of hastily removing part of a memorial to what was at the time our nation’s largest mass shooting, without any supporting safety or discussion, is a cruel political act,” Dyer said.
According to the mayor, the crosswalk enhanced safety and visibility for visitors and also “served as a visual reminder of Orlando’s commitment to honor the 49 lives taken.”
Fellow Democrat Carlos Guillermo Smith, an Orlando state senator, accused the Florida Department of Transportation of “illegally” vandalizing city property “in the middle of the night” without notifying the city or obtaining approval.
“I cannot believe that the DeSantis administration has engaged in this hostile act against the City of Orlando,” Smith said in a video shared on social media, calling the move “a disgusting act of betrayal.”
Smith, who’s gay, said he hoped the City of Orlando would sue the state for vandalizing its property.
“They did this in the middle of the night because they were scared of resistance, knowing what they did was wrong,” he said, referring to the “ridiculously shortsighted and bigoted decision by the State of Florida and the DeSantis administration.”
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