“Anti- Protest Bill”

• This bill enhances penalties for crimes committed during a riot or violent protest, allows people arrested during demonstrations to be held in jail until their appearance in court, and creates new felonies for organizing or participating in a violent demonstration.
• This bill gives broad definitions to words like riot and mob intimidation, leaving them open to potentially harmful interpretation.
• Under HB 1 / SB 484, it would be a second-degree felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison to destroy or demolish a memorial, plaque, flag, painting, structure or other object that commemorates historical people or events.
• This bill strips local governments of liability protections if they interfere with law enforcement during violent protests and forces municipalities to justify proposed reductions in law enforcement budgets.

The right to assemble and petition our government is intrinsic to the American experience and is a right guaranteed to the people by the United States Constitution. Like the right to vote, protest is one of the tools Americans have always used to create positive change in our country. Protests for civil rights, social justice, and environmental protection are the foundation of some of our most important laws.

If passed, HB 1 / SB 484 would exacerbate racial and social inequities, criminalize peaceful protest, and threaten the safety of Floridians who choose to exercise their First Amendment rights 

VOTE NO on HB1 / SB484 and protect Floridians who choose to exercise their First Amendment rights.