A Republican senator from Florida is doing all he can to ensure the state doesn’t pay reparations to those who deserve them.
Sen. Blaise Ingoglia (R-Fla.) filed the constitutional amendment for consideration during the upcoming 2024 ballots. Ingoglia, a former chairman of the state Republican Party, wants to put the proposal, SJR 582, on the legislative session, which starts in January 2024. The conversation surrounding reparations has started in numerous states, including California, where votes to move on the proposal have already been scheduled.
Ingoglia’s bill would ban the state, its counties, municipality, or any political party from paying in the form of reparations to people who are descendants of enslaved people who lived in the United States before December 6, 1865 – which is the date when the 13th Amendment was made valid and officially ended slavery. With Florida being a heavily Republican-represented state, the bill must be 60% approved by each house before being placed on upcoming ballots.
Another bill up on the legislative calendar is the Historical Monuments and Memorials Protection Act. According to CBS 12 News, the bill would protect monuments honoring Confederates and keep them on public display, specifically a Confederate general who escaped to Mexico and Cuba to avoid being arrested for treason.
The former chairman also worked hard to rid the state of The Ultimate Cancel Act in 2022 in an attempt to silence the state’s Democratic Party. His moves would require the Division of Elections to immediately cancel filings from a party if certain conditions exist, including if the party’s platform has supported or advocated for slavery. It was during this time that southern Democrats wanted slavery to continue.
Florida has been sitting in controversy throughout 2023 regarding their racist efforts against Black people. Some included a law that banned public colleges from using federal or state money for diversity, equity and inclusion programs, which Sen. Ingoglia voted for, and changing the education standards for Black history to include how some acts of slavery were beneficial.
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