We had the opportunity to speak with Representative Val Demings of Florida’s 10th district. Here are some excerpts from our conversation.
On the Florida Governor’s response so far:
And so we need leaders that have the ability to rise to the occasion. And unfortunately, our governor just has not done that, he’s been pretty indecisive. He did not issue a shelter in place order immediately. It took a month after the surgeon general declared a public health emergency. And this is about saving lives and we know that any leader’s primary responsibility is the preservation of life. When you look at the numbers in Florida the worst is still yet to come. We have not peaked in my home state yet. And so this is not the time to be indecisive. This is the time to be very decisive, to be confident and to lead from the front. And so I say that in saying that our governor still has an opportunity, uh, to get this right. We can’t play politics during this time. We cannot be indecisive during this time. We are trying to save human lives.
On the Covid-19 Crisis disproportionately impacting communities of colorRep.
And one of the things one of the members of leadership says is that when America catches the cold, black communities catch the flu, and whenever there is a crisis or a lack of resources, vulnerable communities are going to be hit the hardest because they don’t start in a good place. I love the way you framed it that, you know, Dr. King said that of all of the inequities in America, the absence of healthcare is the worst because of the consequences. People die when they don’t have access to quality healthcare. And so I am hopeful that one of the things, I said out of the ashes, good things can happen and crisis will shine a spotlight on our vulnerability as it has here in Florida as it has in at risk communities with the absence of healthcare.
On the Democratic Party coming together:
You know, I think it’s absolutely wonderful and I really think it is a Testament to the commitment of all aspects of our party to really uplifting the quality of life for all Americans. You know, what makes the democratic party so beautiful is our diversity. And we are just so excited about the young energetic talent that we have in our party, like AOC. I just think that people see how bad things are right now. You know Covid-19, we didn’t plan it. We didn’t expect it. Here we are, it’s a horrible crisis. People are dying, but I don’t believe there’s anything that we can’t get through if we work together to get through it. And I believe the party is coming together because we’re looking at the suffering of individuals, the suffering of families in a country that we say is the greatest country in the world. And I really do believe that our democratic leaders understand as they look around that we are the only hope that American families have to be able to live their best life in the best country.
Listen to the entire episode here.
