Inside Conservative America
Florida's political and ideological divide
In Florida, a republican heartland, political and ideological divisions run deep. Governor Ron DeSantis is successfully leading a campaign with anti-LGBT rights at its heart. His strident and hostile rhetoric is striking a chord with conservative voters.
Florida governor Ron DeSantis has been a strong proponent of anti-LGBT rhetoric, and his controversial ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill bans discussion of sexual orientation in schools. ‘We believe an important component of freedom is the freedom from having oppressive ideologies imposed upon you without your consent’, he says. His vehemently vocal support base represents the increasingly polarised way in which social and political issues are dealt with in America today. ‘You’ve got a very motivated and militant and mobilised contingent of Americans who subscribe to Christian Nationalist ideology and they want to fight to preserve their power’, says Samuel Perry, author of The Flag and The Cross. ‘The left wants to marginalise the conservative half of the country’, DeSantis argues.
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