After a person was struck and killed by an automobile at the Stonewall Pride Parade in Wilton Manors Saturday, the political left immediately jumped to blame Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) before the facts surrounding the incident became known.
“This is a terrorist attack against the LGBT community,” Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis (D) said. “This is exactly what it is. Hardly an accident. It was deliberate, it was premeditated, and it was targeted against a specific person. Luckily they missed that person, but unfortunately, they hit two other people.”
As it turns out, a short investigation led to the conclusion by the Fort Lauderdale Police Department (FLPD) that the driver of the car, a 77-year-old man, was a participant in the parade who accidentally accelerated into the crowd. He chose to drive because he was not in the physical condition to walk.
But Trantalis’ message was echoed by others.
“Wilton Manors is what happens when you pass a bill that encourages people to run over protestors with their car,” far-left activist Chris Hahn said on Twitter. “Ron DeSantis and the rest of the Florida GOP have blood on their hands. #DeathSantis.”
That Tweet is now deleted, and Hahn issued an apology.
Far-left writer Lesley Abravanel accused the driver of “domestic terrorism,” which comparing DeSantis to North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, calling him #KimJongRon.
She later acknowledged that she was wrong, but still called DeSantis a “bigot.”
As we now know,last night’s tragic incident at the Wilton Manors #Pride parade wasn’t domestic terrorism. But the toxic environment created by the laws of a bigot like @GovRonDeSantis & the encouragement of Trump’s terror fueled Turd Reich regime & #GQP made it entirely plausible https://t.co/ltgMncEyB6
— Lesley Abravanel (@lesleyabravanel) June 20, 2021
The legislation to which the left refers is HB 1, signed into law in April.
It does not, in fact, legalize domestic terrorism, as claimed by Abravanel.
It is anti-rioting legislation aimed at stopping violent mobs from blocking roads during protests and riots.
“This legislation strikes the appropriate balance of safeguarding every Floridian’s constitutional right to peacefully assemble while ensuring that those who hide behind peaceful protest to cause violence in our communities will be punished,” DeSantis said when he signed the bill. “Further, this legislation ensures that no community in the state engages in defunding of their police.”
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Pete D’Abrosca is a contributor at The Florida Capital Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
