Gov. Ron DeSantis Has Heated Exchange With Black Veteran At Jacksonville News Conference

A Jacksonville, Florida, news conference got heated when Governor Ron DeSantis was called out for reportedly turning the state into a breeding ground for racism.

On Thursday, September 7, a Black man, who identified himself as an Air Force Veteran, addressed DeSantis, accusing his policies of directly contributing to the racist mass shooting that killed three Black Americans in Jacksonville last month.

As reported by News4Jax, the news conference concluded with an open question-and-answer forum, where a man who identified himself as a veteran told DeSantis that he believed his policies to be harmful. The veteran referenced the New Town shooting at the Dollar General.

“I feel that you have enacted policies that hurt people like myself,” he said. “You have allowed weapons to be put on the street into immature, hateful people that have caused the deaths of the people who were murdered a couple of weeks ago. Please let me finish, sir.”

DeSantis was quick to cut the veteran off in an attempt to defend himself. He raised his voice and accusingly pointed out the man in the crowd.

“So first of all, I did not allow anything with that. Excuse me. I’m not gonna let you accuse me of committing criminal activity. I am not going to take that. I’m not going to take that. You want to have a civil conversation, that’s one thing…try to say that I’m letting…that guy was Baker Acted. He should have been ruled ineligible, but they didn’t involuntarily commit him,” DeSantis said.

“Please allow me to speak my truth, sir,” the veteran calmly said as DeSantis continued to ignore him.

“No, there is the truth. There is something about the truth. It’s not everyone doesn’t have their own truth. You don’t get to come here and blame me for some madman. That is not appropriate, and I’m not going to accept it,” DeSantis continued.

DeSantis attempted to shift responsibility by mentioning that the shooter, who committed suicide, was involuntarily detained and examined by medical professionals during a mental health crisis when he was 15. According to public records, he was lawfully detained for up to 72 hours under the Baker Act.

The veteran spoke out again, “You have allowed people to hunt people like me.”

“Oh, that is nonsense. That is such nonsense. We’ve done more, we’ve done more to support law enforcement in this state than anybody in throughout the United States,” DeSantis shot back.

The veteran was escorted out of the news conference by security following his exchange with DeSantis.

Despite the governor’s defense, the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida echoed the veteran’s sentiment on X, the social platform formerly known as Twitter.

Gov. DeSantis’ policies have made Florida less safe for Black people in Florida. https://t.co/bkY88BFHOb

— ACLU of Florida (@ACLUFL) September 7, 2023

Then there was this revelation:

Also: Gov. DeSantis has made it a habit to remove Black men from spaces where they challenge his authority.

— ACLU of Florida (@ACLUFL) September 7, 2023