Project Pride SRQ is planning a “compassion at the crosswalk” event to honor the 49 people who lost their lives during the Pulse shooting. The event, which won’t be scheduled until later this month, will be held where the “PrideWalk” sat before it was removed on Aug. 28.
Tom Edwards, Sarasota County School Board member and Project Pride SRQ’s latest executive director, said that he first thought of the 49 families of the Pulse shooting victims when he heard the PrideWalk was being removed. Sarasota resident Eddie Sotomayer Jr. was one of the 49 people killed in the Orlando gay nightclub on June 12, 2016.
The PrideWalk mural was completed in April 2021 using geometric patterns that wove elements of the Progress Pride flag and transgender flag.
Removal of pavement art in Sarasota began on Aug. 21, following Senate Bill 1662, signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in June. The 2,500 square-foot color crosswalk mural was removed alongside hundreds of sidewalk square art in Sarasota. A date for the event hasn’t been set yet, but Edwards said the group is planning on holding it within the next few weeks.
The loss of the crosswalk and other artwork is a loss of democracy for Edwards. With Sarasota having one of the largest arts communities in the entire state, he called the removal a slap in the face.
“In that childish, schoolyard bullying behavior, you triggered 49 families’ grief and trauma,” Edwards said.
SB-1662 directs the Florida Department of Transportation to ensure all traffic control devices meet the updated guidelines in the 2025 FDOT design manual.
It bans art on travel lanes, paved shoulders, intersections, crosswalks and sidewalks. FDOT claims it’s to make roads for drivers and pedestrians.
Edwards hopes to build community resiliency at Project Pride SRQ. He wants young people in the LGBTQ+ community to know that they are strong and can push back against bullies and emphasized the importance of standing together as a community. Edwards has faced his own hardship and bullying behavior while serving on the school board.
Edwards, who is openly gay, has faced criticism since his election to the school board in 2020, when he defeated former school board member Eric Robinson. He was also named in DeSantis’ 2024 school board target list.
In March 2023, Edwards walked out of a school board meeting as public commenters attacked him because of his sexual identity.
The Republican Party of Sarasota called Edwards’ new role at Project Pride SRQ a conflict of interest, but Edwards has reaffirmed his commitment to his role on the school board.
“I’m not here to fight anyone,” Edwards said. “ I’m here to make sure that people are not sitting quiet because of fear and retaliation, and I want to make sure that people are not sitting on their hands because they think this era will pass. It’s not going to pass. What we accept, we teach.”
Melissa Pérez-Carrillo covers breaking news and public safety for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Reach out at mperezcarrillo@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Project Pride SRQ plans event to honor Pulse victims after ‘PrideWalk’ removal
Reporting by Melissa Pérez-Carrillo, Sarasota Herald-Tribune / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
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