by Shayna Lopez Rivas
Clash Daily Guest Contributor
An Open Letter to the Florida Republican Party:
I was raped on campus at Florida State University. He had a knife and I had pepper spray. You can read how well that worked for me. Campus carry is important to me; it is personal for me. We need concealed carry on campus now and the Republican legislators are in the way.
I never thought I would have to write this letter. I thought that after the amazing wins the Republican party gained this past election on a local, state, and national level, that our constitutional rights would not only be protected but we would revise all the laws that seek to unreasonably restrict those rights, especially those that pertain to the Second Amendment.
Yet here we are. I am writing this only day before legislative session starts officially on March 7th in Florida and the only thing that I have seen come out dealing with gun rights are sloppy bills from supposedly pro-gun Senators and Congressmen and a deep state of apathy and division within the Republican Party in measuring how they will deal with those bills.
Well, I am done. I am sick and tired of waiting for Florida Republicans to get themselves together and pass bills that would restore our Second Amendment rights. We should be able to carry in the supposedly gun free zones for which so many innocent, law abiding citizens, including myself, have fallen victim to criminals who did not care about the law.
I am tired of dealing with RINOs—Republicans in Name Only—who do not care about conservative principles, who do not care about the Constitution, and who only care about whether or not they can remain in power for a little while longer.
All I get from Republican leadership and politicians and their assistants are, “I’m so sorry” or “We support you and what you’re doing”; but I don’t see their support measuring into action and I don’t want their half-hearted apologies.
I want to be able to protect myself on campus the way I choose. I want other women to feel empowered to make that choice. Because if even just one woman is able to protect herself from facing the same fate that I faced, then everything would be worth it.
And if the Republican Party, it’s politicians, and the members of it can’t see why that is so incredibly important, then this party is dying. There is no point in winning elections if we don’t do anything with those wins! It is time to hear campus-carry in committees, vote for it in those committees, vote for it on the respective floors of both chambers, and send that bill to Governor Rick Scott to sign into law. No more excuses.
To the Florida Republican party, I think it’s time to remind you what happens to RINOs. RINOs like Miguel Diaz de la Portilla, former chair of the Senate Judiciary committee and the man who single-handedly blocked pro-gun bills last year, who lost his reelection in the Senate despite spending an inordinate amount of more money than his opponent.
It’s time to aim our metaphorical crosshairs and start hunting RINO’s and taking back our party—putting conservative principles, like the right to self-defense, back in priority. Remind your legislators with letters and phone calls to their state and district offices to vote in favor of Second Amendment legislation. If they don’t vote for your rights this session, don’t vote for them when they are up for reelection.
Remember, it’s always open season for RINOs.
Image: From https://www.facebook.com/events/705103222997123/
