Fort Lauderdale to fight state order to remove rainbow street art

Fort Lauderdale will not bow down to the state’s demand that it remove four street art designs — including a rainbow-colored pride flag painted on a street near the beach.

Before a packed house, commissioners voted unanimously Wednesday night to appeal the state’s order to remove the pavement art by Sept. 4 or risk the state removing it.

Mayor Dean Trantalis warned of what might happen if the city were to back down to the state on what he called a draconian order.

“You have to ask, where does it end?” he said. “Tonight we must stand our ground. We cannot be bullied into submission and to allow others to dictate what happens in our community.”

Gov. Ron DeSantis has defended the statewide order, reiterating this week that cities will be forced to abide by it. Last week, he warned against allowing “state roads to be commandeered for political purposes.”

But in a move signaling the city’s willingness to take the battle to court, Fort Lauderdale’s commission also agreed to retain an outside law firm to pursue all legal options in the event the appeal fails.

That vote was 4-1, with Vice Mayor John Herbst casting the “no” vote.

Commissioner Pamela Beasley-Pittman argued the city had no choice but to take a stand.

“I don’t think we should step aside and let the state dictate what should be done,” she said. “I think we should fight this out to the end.”

Before the vote, Trantalis called the names of more than 40 people who had signed up to speak.

Most urged the commission to stand strong, draw a line in the sand and fight the good fight in the name of diversity and kindness to all.

“It’s transparent what’s happening here,” longtime resident Troy Liggett told the commission. “It’s hateful and it’s hurtful to those of us in the LGBTQ community. I would be very disappointed if the city took the initiative to paint over these. I think the city should pursue every legal avenue to protest this.”

Now is not the time to back down, said speaker Kate Driscoll.

“Every day in America is for straight white men,” she said. “Women, brown and Black people, gay people — we’ve all had to fight for our rights. And we are still fighting for our rights. So if we want to paint a crosswalk. If we want to wear a shirt or button and it offends the fragile male ego of people like [U.S. Secretary of Defense] Pete Hegseth or [President] Donald Trump, that’s just too bad. Because we are not going away. They started this fight. But we are all together now and we are determined to finish it.”

Jennifer Jones, an organizer with Hope and Action Indivisible, echoed that sentiment.

“The rainbow markings are not just paint on the street,” she said. “It is a symbol of visibility, inclusion and pride. We don’t hurt people. We don’t push our agenda. We are just here trying to live. But when you come for us we will stand up, and we will not back down.”

Not everyone in the room wanted to see Fort Lauderdale take on the state.

Resident Chris Nelson reminded the commission that he predicted the pride flag would be defaced soon after it was painted on Sebastian Street two years ago.

“This flag has been burned out on so many times it is not even recognizable,” he said. “The street is not a place to put a flag. It’s going to be driven over. And right now, you’re going to have to remove these flags. It’s just the law.”

Resident Ann Wiley agreed.

“Roadways are for public transit, not for promoting a special interest,” she told the commission. “Should we have Heterosexual Highway? Should we have the Catholic church paint a cross down the road or a synagogue paint a Star of David? In my opinion this has nothing to do with being gay. It has to do with promoting a special human interest. There are many ways to promote that, but not our streets. Our streets are for public transit.”

Commissioner Steve Glassman, a fierce advocate for the LGBTQ community who has been leading the charge to save the street art, thanked the crowd for showing up and speaking up.

All four sites targeted by the state are in his district, he noted.

“I feel we have to go all in on this,” he said before the vote. “We have a rainbow on a lifeguard tower at Sebastian beach. If we don’t go all in right now, the next letter we’ll get [from the state] is, ‘Hey what’s with this art on the lifeguard towers?’ We have to take a stand. We have to pull out all the stops. I don’t want to see a letter saying [we have to] remove the art on the lifeguard towers.”

Susannah Bryan can be reached at moc.lenitnesnus@nayrbs. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan