Erin Reed
‪@erininthemorning.com‬

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1. Florida banned cities from lighting up bridges rainbow colors for Pride.

So the people of Jacksonville did it themselves using flashlights and gels.

They opened the drawbridge to block them.

So they marched to a different bridge.

The latest from S. Baum.

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Defying DeSantis, Florida Pride Marchers Light Up Jacksonville Bridge with Rainbow
Organizers demonstrated that they didn’t need state permission for queer visibility.
www.erininthemorning.com
June 2, 2025 at 9:01 PM

Defying DeSantis, Florida Pride Marchers Light Up Jacksonville Bridge with Rainbow Colors

LGBT Floridians demonstrated that they didn’t need state permission for queer visibility.

S. BAUM
JUN 02, 2025


Photo credit to Amanda Smith

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Last year, when Florida Governor Ron DeSantis issued a ban on the cherished tradition of lighting up Florida bridges in rainbow colors for Pride, queer activists brought flashlights and did it themselves.

This year, as the hordes of rally-goers approached the Main Street Bridge in Jacksonville, flashlights in tow, the drawbridge began to rise—with no warning and no boats approaching, organizers told Erin in the Morning. The bridge stayed upright until the marchers turned around and left, but they didn’t go home.

Instead, organizers pivoted and walked to the nearby Acosta Bridge, which is contiguous. There, they celebrated Pride with the full spectrum of the rainbow—showing they didn’t need permission from the state for queer visibility.

“We organized our friends and community to make it happen,” said Erika d’Amore, one of the organizers behind the action. “I want everyone to know that they have every right and every ability they need within them to make their own statements. We need to work together to make sure that we don't get erased.”

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