"The state of Florida has become the epicenter of Republicans' rainbow crosswalk crackdown. The DeSantis administration has heeded warnings from federal Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who has falsely claimed Pride art is distracting to drivers. Duffy wrote in a July 1 letter to the nation's governors that all non-freeway intersections and crosswalks must be kept "free from distractions." In a subsequent X post, he said, "Taxpayers expect their dollars to fund safe streets, not rainbow crosswalks.""
"The City of St. Petersburg, Florida, has unveiled 11 Pride-themed bike racks to replace the rainbow crosswalks Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) forced officials to remove. "Pride on the streets!" declared a social media post from the city and its mayor, Ken Welch (D), who called the bike racks "a vibrant way to honor the Pride street murals that were removed earlier this year due to state requirements." The post includes a video of construction workers installing the colorful racks, some of which are rainbow for the Pride flag and others that are the colors of the Trans Pride flag. Folks celebrated the move in the comments, calling the new displays "amazing," "clever," "awesome," "beautiful," and "a smarter path forward." "Love our little inclusive, Sunshine City," one person wrote. "Now that's what I'm talking about!" said another."
St. Petersburg installed 11 Pride-themed bike racks to replace rainbow crosswalks that were removed after state directives. The new racks include designs reflecting both the Pride flag and the Trans Pride flag and were installed publicly with a city video. Local reaction praised the racks as creative, inclusive, and a smarter alternative to pavement murals. The removal of rainbow crosswalks followed federal warnings about driver distraction and a Florida law directing FDOT to enforce a uniform traffic control system, effectively banning pavement art such as rainbow crosswalks.
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