Gotta admit, I’m not feeling upbeat this morning. For this quintessential “we’ll figure this out” kinda girl, I know what triggered it, but so far I haven’t quite decided how to, well, figure it out. Key West breaks your heart sometimes.

That’s what happened on March 5 when the Key West City Commission voted 4-3 against supporting a simple resolution: “The City Commission finds it to be in the best interest of the residents, businesses and visitors of Key West to formally express its concerns regarding the potential unintended consequences of SB 1134 and HB 1001.”

Known colloquially as “Anti-Diversity in Local Government,” the legislation will become law on Jan. 1, 2027. The Florida Senate passed its bill on March 4. On March 10, the House said “sure” and off it went to Gov. Ron DeSantis, who’s got his signing pen in hand.

There’s a lot not to like about legislation that strips local government of its right to home rule and threatens elected officials with removal from office and lawsuits by folks opposed to anything that smacks of One Human Family. Make no mistake, since Jan. 8, 2019 when DeSantis became governor, the State of Florida has been relentless in taking over local government and in “disappearing” anyone who doesn’t look like a 1950s marketing campaign.

Supporters of the legislation reluctantly admitted the bills’ language is vague and carved out a handful of exceptions to try to make it more palatable. The new law defines “diversity, equity and inclusion” as any attempt to give preferential treatment to or the implementation of any activity designed with reference to a particular race, color, sex, ethnicity, gender identity or sexual orientation.

Its opponents, not surprisingly, raised a ruckus. The intended consequences are what the ruckus is all about.

I’m with the Key West ruckus crowd, which on March 5 included commissioners Monica Haskell, Sam Kaufman and Donie Lee. Those three got the point: This legislation has the potential to upend our economy. Surely we ought to at least express concerns.

As I wrote recently, with this legislation, “Key West can kiss goodbye to Goombay, Fantasy Fest, Womenfest, Pride Month, Conch Republic Days and a slew of smaller festivals and events that power our tourist economy. Maybe we’ll keep Hemingway Days. He was a straight white guy.”

These four couldn’t muster a smidgen of care

And that’s where Key West breaks your heart. More specifically, it’s where three commissioners and the mayor couldn’t muster the courage to sign on to a simple resolution. Mayor Danise “Dee Dee” Henriquez cast the deciding vote against the resolution, joining commissioners Lissette Carey, Aaron Castillo and Greg Veliz. None gave a compelling reason for doing so, except for some extended blathering about losing state funding.

Are they DeSantis doormats so steeped in Christian Nationalist culture that they’ll vote against Key West’s One Human Family and the most powerful economic drivers we have, just so Tallahassee Daddy might smile upon them? Or are they clueless? Probably a bit of both, depending on which we’re talking about. But one thing is becoming clear — that these four are gutless when it comes to supporting the inclusive libertarian culture of this island.

Their vote against this simple resolution is unlike the 4-2 decision on July 8, 2025 to enter into a formal 287g agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a vote that made Key West a partner with ICE in what has become a yearlong roundup of local residents for deportation. As much as I wanted it otherwise, and without the advantage of foresight, I could understand back then taking a placating stand and I cut them some slack. Best have our trusted local cops involved rather than ICE run amok. Hindsight, of course, shows ICE ran amok anyway.

This time their four votes against the resolution was tantamount to cutting off the city’s nose to spite its face. Key West breaks your heart sometimes.

So what to do? Say thanks to Haskell and Kaufman for their steadfastness. Give a cheer for state Rep. Jim Mooney, our Keys representative, who voted against the House bill. And remember this quote from Vice Mayor Lee: “This proposed legislation is unnecessary. Our legislators should be focused on making Florida more affordable by reducing property taxes and exorbitant insurance rates. This ‘Anti-Diversity in Local Government’ bill is a state overreach. It’s overly broad, vague, punitive and mean. We should celebrate diversity, not criminalize it.”

And you can vote in August.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this column was published in the Keys Citizen on March 12, 2026.