1. United States
2. Fla.
3. Letter

I’m writing to tell you how deeply hurt and disgusted I am by the overnight removal of the rainbow crosswalk honoring the 49 lives lost at the Pulse nightclub—a site that represents both grief and resilience for LGBTQ Floridians. This wasn’t a safety decision or an act of neutral enforcement. It was a callous, cruel political act, as Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer rightly called it. That crosswalk served a vital dual purpose: increasing pedestrian safety and standing as a solemn visual tribute to lives torn from our community. You erased that tribute in the dead of night, avoiding accountability and empathy. Florida’s roadway art has saved lives and lifted communities—Bloomberg Philanthropies found that intersections with street art, including rainbows, saw a significant drop in traffic incidents. These crosswalks are cultural landmarks, not distractions. Communities from Key West to Delray Beach are fighting hard to preserve them. This is blatant erasure—and it sends a message that LGBTQ lives and their ability to mourn publicly don’t matter unless convenient for your political agenda. That is un-American and unacceptable. Please reverse course: • Restore or replace the crosswalk immediately, perhaps with a mural or permanent memorial at the site. • Publicly apologize to the LGBTQ community. • Commit to transparency and consultation on decisions impacting public memorials and LGBTQ visibility.