The state veterans agency on Thursday said it is open to changes in a list of veterans proposed as inductees for a new state Hall of Fame after an African-American state senator complained it was overly white and called on Gov. Rick Scott to reject it.
The list, which is made up only of former governors, includes six who served in the Confederate military and one convicted of and jailed for "intimidating Negroes." It was created by the state Department of Veterans Affairs, which quickly moved to assure the public that it is not a final list.
"This is a good old boy list of good old boy governors, Sen. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa, said in a statement released by Senate Democrats on Thursday. We have Floridians of all colors who have not only earned the nations highest military honors but some who have made the ultimate sacrifice, yet were honoring racist governors? As the governor of the entire state, Rick Scott should be embarrassed by the recommendations.
The Legislature created the new Veterans Hall of Fame and the Veterans Affairs agency came up with the list for the first inductees and started with governors who have served in the military.
The list was presented to Scott and the Cabinet for approval at next week's meeting, but the agency on Thursday signaled a change is likely.
A spokesman for the agency said the list is a "working draft and does not reflect the direction of the governor and Cabinet."
The department's new director, Scott's former chief of staff, also sent out a statement.
We are committed to including a diverse array of highly distinguished veterans of all eras who served Florida and the nation, said Veterans Affairs Executive Director Mike Prendergast.
The agency draft list started with 22 veterans who have served as governor of the state, including Scott who served in the Navy.
But also on the list are six governors who served in the military not of the United States, but of the Confederate States of America, of which Florida was a part.
The most controversial of those six is likely Florida Gov. Abraham Kurkindolle Allison, who served in the Confederate Army and was imprisoned after the Union occupied Tallahassee at the end of the war. He was governor for just about a month in 1865.
Later, in 1872, Allison was convicted of "intimidating Negroes" in Quincy and jailed for six months.
Allison's inclusion on the list, along with the other Confederates, was first reported on by the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
"Does the state of Florida, the governor and Cabinet really want to honor a person who was convicted of intimidating black people?" Joyner asked Thursday. "Are there really no better qualified military veterans black, white or Latino, male or female more deserving of such a tribute?
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