BOYCOTT: How immigration policy in Florida has come back to bite DeSantis
Florida might learn a harsh lesson about what happens when one villainizes whole segments of the population essential to the economy as the state’s transportation infrastructure faces the threat of a devastating boycott that could bring the shipments of goods into and out of the state to a grinding halt.
Hispanic truckers are threatening to boycott Florida in response to new legislation signed by Governor Ron DeSantis that imposes harsh new penalties on undocumented immigrants in the state.
Independent journalist Arturo Dominguez tweeted last Saturday that, “Spanish language social media has exploded with Latino truck drivers calling for a boycott and refusing to take shipments into Florida.”
Dominquez went on to understate, “Things are about to get interesting.”
For our bilingual readers, Dominguez shared his thoughts in a video taped in Spanish:
Here's another one (in Spanish) pic.twitter.com/axhs3PEqYu
— Arturo Dominguez 🇨🇺🇺🇲 (@ExtremeArturo) May 13, 2023
According to Newsweek, the boycott would begin on June 1st, or one month prior to the new law going into effect, in a show of respect and support for other Hispanics who will suffer under the restrictions in the legislation.
The date is also timed “So [Gov. DeSantis and the State of Florida] appreciate the emigrant.”
According to an industry website, “Freight Waves,” truckers are even speaking on TikTok about the boycott.
In one video, a Hispanic trucker is quoted as saying, “Truckers, don’t enter the state of Florida. Let’s be united as Latinos in defense of our Latin American brothers who are being assaulted by this very stupid law, which incites hatred and discrimination.”
In another video, a second trucker said, “My truck will not be going to Florida at all. I’m pretty sure we can all come together as a Latino community and boycott Florida as a whole because what they are doing to our brothers and sisters out there is not fair,”
Among many other provisions, Florida’s new immigration law expands requirements for businesses with more than 25 employees to use E-Verify, a federal system that determines if employees can legally work in the U.S.
The new law also invalidates out-of-state driver’s licenses held by people living in the country illegally.
The boycott, if implemented, would also provide a harsh lesson for people predisposed to attacking Hispanic citizens and undocumented workers.
Florida has an estimated 300,000 undocumented agricultural workers in the state. Agriculture is the state’s sixth-largest economic sector. Florida has even more immigrants in the tourism industry, the largest sector.
Ironically, and similar to DeSantis’s battle against Disney, if DeSantis succeeded in driving out all undocumented workers tomorrow, it would devastate the Sunshine State’s economy based on the numbers above.
And that is without the trucking boycott, which would also prove harmful.
But DeSantis is expected to announce that he is running for the GOP nomination for president in 2024 and this legislation seems timed to serve DeSantis’s political needs.
According to the Tallahassee Democrat, DeSantis justified the legislation by stating:
“We’re bracing for some turbulent times ahead. And I think when you have a president who has turned a blind eye to what’s gone on at the border… you’re likely to see it get a lot worse. We’re protecting Floridians, to the full extent of our ability.”
DeSantis added, “We have to stop this nonsense, this is not good for our country. This is no way to run a government.”
Biden’s Border Crisis is a catastrophe.
While Washington abdicates its responsibility to secure our border, Florida is once again stepping up.
Today, I signed legislation to combat illegal immigration and to deter illegal immigrants from coming to Florida.
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) May 10, 2023
DeSantis says he is protecting Floridians? The 300,000 undocumented agriculture workers make up 60% of the ag workforce according to the Farmworkers Association of Florida.
He is certainly not protecting those 300,000 Floridians that are so vital to the economy.
According to The New American Economy (an academic journal), immigrants comprise 42% of Florida’s tourism workers, though the report does not break down that number between documented and undocumented immigrants.
It appears there are two standoffs about to come to a head.
There are Hispanic truckers threatening to keep their trucks out of the state, significantly hampering Florida’s economy.
And there is Candidate DeSantis’s new immigration law versus Governor DeSantis’s need for his state to economically thrive.
Indeed, things are about to get interesting.
I can be reached at jasonmiciak@gmail.com and @JasonMiciak
