Brevard County Commissioner John Tobia’s failed resolution calling for Congress to reject Puerto Rican statehood may have awakened the political awareness of Puerto Ricans across Central Florida instead, said civil rights activist Sam Lopez.
“It’s not over. He woke up a sleeping giant. So many are upset with him right now,” said Lopez, president of civil rights organization United Third Bridge, Inc.
Lopez said the organization will meet Thursday at its office in Melbourne to work out plans to organize protests against Tobia and to picket Valencia College in neighboring Osceola County where he works as a professor. The group is also refocusing its look on other areas – from economic to education – where it believes improvements must be made.
However, the commissioner is not backing away from his stance.
“I greatly appreciate political participation, so if that’s something (Lopez) thinks will benefit his case, I’d strongly encourage it. It’s within his right,” said Tobia, offering to provide water and sustenance for any protesters.
“I’d even furnish him with the dates and times I’ll be on campus,” Tobia said, adding that the protesters should check with Valencia’s administrators first.
Lopez says he wants to use the momentum from Tobia’s rejected resolution to also apply pressure to other entities, including Eastern Florida State College to improve or increase Hispanic representation among administrators. He says the organization has fought for two decades to break down language barriers and to improve the job situation for area Hispanics.
The move by Brevard County Commissioner John Tobia to recommend that Congress block efforts to approve Puerto Rican statehood is attracting attention on social media. Wochit
“I believe this has focused people. This resolution by Tobia shows us what he thinks. Yes, look at the debt of the island but don’t pick on a group of people to promote fear,” Lopez said. "This was also (live streamed) .. .people in Puerto Rican were also watching this," he added.
Tobia introduced the controversial measure after the start of Tuesday’s Brevard County Commission meeting before several hundred people.
The measure died without any of the other commissioners offering to second the motion’s reading. Tobia says he wanted to use the vote to send a message to Congress not to allow statehood for the U.S. territory which voted in June, until its debt – projected to be up to $120 billion – is brought under control.
But opponents took the resolution as a provocative challenge to one of the fastest growing minority populations in Florida.
A report by the Hispanic Federation shows that there are one million Puerto Ricans living in Florida.
Many more are moving stateside, including Florida, as the island reels from over $100 billion in lingering debt and deep cuts in social services from education to healthcare. Puerto Ricans are also expected to surpass Cubans in three years as the state’s largest Hispanic group.
There are an estimated 22,241 Puerto Ricans living in Brevard County, according to information gleaned by the Center for Puerto Rican Studies in 2015.
In comments during Tuesday night’s County Commission meeting, Orlando resident Anthony Suarez, told Tobia that, because of Tobia’s resolution, “this is getting wide coverage in Puerto Rico and around the country” in the news media.
“You gave us this opportunity to bring forth this issue of Puerto Rico,” said Suarez, a lawyer who is president of the Puerto Rican Bar Association of Florida and a former member of the Florida House of Representatives.
Lopez said he is coordinating with other Puerto Rican groups and organizers across Central Florida to ensure the protests are well attended.
“There’s no question to us that this is about discrimination,” Lopez said. “Don’t trash us.”
Dave Berman contributed to this report. Contact Gallop at 321-242-3642, jdgallop@floridatoday.com and Twitter at @JDGallop
Rejected resolution could fuel Puerto Rican activism, organizer says
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