The CEO of Visit Florida, the state¡¯s main
tourism organization, explained nearly a week later why the group removed the
LGBTQ+ travel section from its website.
Her comments at an annual tourism
convention in Tampa appeared unsatisfactory.
¡°It¡¯s fairly simple. Visit Florida is a
taxpayer-funded organization and, as such, Visit Florida our marketing
strategy, our materials and our content must align with the state,¡± said Visit Florida
CEO
Dana Young.
The organization was nationally criticized
for removing the section, including a passage that read the state¡¯s beaches
were ¡°a draw for people of all orientations, but especially appealing to a gay
community looking for a sense of belonging and acceptance.¡±
Visit Florida had previously been lauded
for its inclusive practices and the LGBTQ community has long been a travel powerhouse.
Young declined to elaborate on her
comments.
¡°It doesn't make any sense from a business
perspective,¡± said Rachel Covello, a St. Pete-based LGBTQ travel blogger who
first discovered the missing link about a month ago. ¡°It makes the LGBTQ people
living in Florida and traveling to Florida think that the state just doesn't
care about us.¡±
Covello said she never received an
explanation on why the link was removed from the travel website.
¡°It was a very blanket, surface answer,¡±
she said. ¡°They¡¯re saying they¡¯re falling in line with administration, but they
welcome all to Florida. That doesn¡¯t make sense together.¡±?
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