First, the sun beat down. Then came dark clouds and torrential rain. But it couldn’t douse the passion of thousands of activists determined to make their voices heard and their presence felt.
The We The People March was held Sunday, July 2, 2023 at Esplanade Park in downtown Fort Lauderdale and brought together more than fifty groups with various missions for one important cause: civil rights. The rally, organized by AHF (AIDS Healthcare Foundation), was a response to legislation, proposed and passed in 44 states this year, targeting LGBTQIA+, Brown and Black people, women, and more.
“I’m here in the community to support everyone,” Josie Malave-Smith, owner of Bubbles & Pearls on Wilton Drive, told OutClique. “I’m the generation that’s been marching for decades.”
Groups included Safe Schools South Florida, SunServe, PRISM, League of Women Voters, Florida Rising, and others. The goal is to unite allies who, despite serving different segments of the community, are under attack by social conservatives who have passed laws limiting everything from drag entertainment, women’s health, trans health, and more.
A broad range of SunServe’s clients, from trans care to youth services, are affected by the laws. SunServe had a large contingent on hand for the march, and CEO Tony Lima told OutClique, “This is the most important initiative we could all, as a community, be a part of right now. SunServe mobilized an army of 100 supporters to join our team for the day to March and make it known that we’ve had enough. The fight is officially on!”
The drag ban, which a court has put on hold, is especially threatening beyond the drag community itself. The Imperial Sun Court of All Florida (ISCOAF) is a drag-centric organization that raises money for other charities. ISCOAF Reigning Emperor Eric Lipson said, “We are here to stand with all the marginalized communities and fight as one unit to win this war. We raise money for the community. It has a direct impact on our work and we need to fight to be there.
Much of the focus was on standing up for the next generation of LGBTQIA+. “My little niece and nephew, who can’t be here today and aren’t able to vote, I’m here for them,” Malave-Smith said. PRISM works on youth health, and founder Maxx Fenning told OutClique, “It’s important for us to recognize that Gen-Z is the next generation taking up the mantle. It’s important to show up in every space we’re impacted.”
They were also decrying book bans. In Florida, it’s easier than ever for a book to be banned from a school, with just one citizen complaint needed to launch an investigation and a potential ban. That’s an issue close to the heart of Gregg Shapiro. Though the local author’s works aren’t being targeted (yet), he knows censorship at one level is censorship at all levels. “Our presentation in movies, on television, in books is important. They’re trying to silence us talking about our lives as LGBTQ+ people. That’s a serious infraction.”
AHF’s Ebonni Chrispin organized South Florida’s rally (several similar events were held over the weekend in other cities as well). She says the laws being passed by Republican-led legislatures across the country lack empathy. “They’re unkind. They don’t consider everyone’s way of life or what they’re struggling with. They don’t consider personal autonomy. And so AHF wanted to spearhead to help other organizations organize. But most importantly, we wanted to unify so we can be in action and create strategy.”
What happens next? The goal is for all groups to use momentum from The We The People March to organize ahead of next year’s elections for president, a Florida senate seat, and make gains in Tallahassee and deprive conservative Republicans of their supermajority.
