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Economic and Political Change
The
Florida Economy
Political
Change
Violence
Erupts
Working
for Change
Strengthening
Voting Rights
Challenging
Segregation
Political
Change in Modern Florida
Political
Leaders in Modern Florida
The Florida Economy
After years of planning and
building, Walt Disney's dream came true. Today Disney
World in Orlando is the most popular tourist destination
in the world. Florida's many attractions bolster
the economy. The beaches, parks, and theme parks
draw millions of visitors from across the United
States and around the world. Tourism is Florida's
largest industry. It represents about one-fifth
of Florida's total economy. In 2002, tourism generated
nearly $50 billion in taxable sales. Tourism provided
nearly $3 billion in state sales tax revenues, or
total income.
Next to tourism, agriculture is the biggest part
of the economy. Florida is the nation's top producer
of citrus, sugarcane, tomatoes, and strawberries.
Florida is also a leading producer of eggs, beef
cattle, and potatoes.
While Florida's economy still relies strongly on
tourism and farming, Florida's job growth has developed
with light industry and the service industry. The
state has been expanding its manufacturing because
of its good climate, improved air transportation,
and deep water port system. Florida's booming population
also provides many workers.
Florida's economy has become more diverse in the
last 50 years. Electronics, construction, and banking
are important industries. Florida is home to major
international airports and plays an important role
in global trade. Among the largest corporations
with headquarters in Florida are Office Depot at
Delray Beach and Winn-Dixie Stores at Jacksonville.
Political Change
Today, laws at the federal, state, and local
level protect the people of Florida against unlawful
discrimination. Discrimination is unfair treatment
because of a person's race, religion, ethnic background,
age, or place of birth. All people have the right
to expect fair treatment in employment and housing
opportunities. They also have the right to expect
fair treatment in the state's hotels, restaurants,
and other areas of entertainment.
Violence Erupts
This was not always the case,
however. Many citizens were denied their rights.
Sometimes, racial violence erupted. One such incident
occurred in the town of Ocoee near Orlando. In November
1920, two whites and at least five African Americans
were killed in a dispute over voting rights. Twenty-five
houses and two churches were destroyed. Most African
Americans left the town. By 1925, all the African
Americans had moved away from Ocoee. In January
1923 mobs destroyed the homes of African Americans
in Rosewood, 3 located in Levy County. Seventy years
later, the Florida legislature agreed to compensate
survivors of the Rosewood tragedy.
Working for Change
Many Floridians worked to make sure that their
fellow citizens would be able to live their lives
without fear or discrimination. Mary McLeod Bethune
worked for the right to education and freedom from
discrimination for African Americans. Bethune founded
a school in Florida for the children of African
American railroad workers. Gradually, she raised
enough money to found the Daytona Educational and
Training School. This school later became Bethune-Cookman
College. She served as an adviser on African American
affairs to four presidents. In 1936, President Franklin
Roosevelt named her director of the Division of
Negro Affairs. Bethune was the first African American
woman to serve as head of a federal agency.
Strengthening Voting Rights
In 1934, an African American
school teacher named Harry Moore started the Brevard
County National Association for the Advancement
of Colored People. Moore soon built the NAACP chapter
into a strong organization. Moore supported equal
pay for African American teachers, helped organize
African American voters, and fought against discrimination.
When Moore first began his efforts for voter registration
in 1934, only 5 percent of Florida's African Americans
who were eligible to vote were registered. Sixteen
years later, the percentage had risen to 31 percent-a
higher percentage than in any other Southern state.
Moore's efforts to raise the status of African Americans
angered many whites who felt threatened by the prospect
of equality of the races. Moore and his wife, Harriette,
were killed when a bomb was exploded in their Mims,
Florida home on Christmas Eve in 1951.
Florida women won the right to vote in 1920 after
the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
became law. Mary Mann Jennings was one of the strongest
supporters for woman suffrage. She also campaigned
for better treatment of prisoners, highway beautification,
and Seminole Indian reservations. In 1928, Floridians
elected Ruth Bryan Owen to Congress. She was the
first Democratic woman elected to Congress from
Florida. She sponsored bills to develop Florida's
rivers and harbors, including Port Everglades, which
today is among the nation's top seaports.
Doing away with the poll tax in 1937 allowed poor
Floridians to have a greater voice in government.
In 1944 the Supreme Court outlawed the all-white
primary elections that had limited African American
voting in many states.
Challenging Segregation
In the late 1950s and early
1960s, some Floridians pushed to challenge segregation.
In Tallahassee two Florida A&M students were
arrested for sitting in a whites-only section of
a city bus. A six-month bus boycott led to the desegregation
of the city's public transportation.
Robert Hayling, an African American dentist, organized
campaigns against segregated public facilities in
St. Augustine. Hayling was singled out and beaten
by Ku Klux Klan members for his activities, but
refused to stop organizing campaigns. He persuaded
Martin Luther King, Jr., to take part in the protests
against segregated beaches, swimming pools, and
motels. The publicity surrounding the protests pushed
Congress to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The
act gave the federal government broad power to prevent
racial discrimination in a number of areas.
Political Change in
Modern Florida
The foundation of state and
local government in the state is set forth in the
Florida Constitution. The current constitution was
ratified in 1968. Like the U.S. Constitution, the
Florida Constitution provides for three branches
of government-executive, legislative, and judicial.
The 1968 constitution includes 23 sections on the
rights of citizens and the limits of government
power. Once every 20 years a committee reviews Florida's
Constitution and proposes changes for the voters
to consider. The committee completed its last review
in 1997-1998.
Political Leaders in
Modern Florida
From the period of Reconstruction
until well into the 1900s, the Democratic Party
was the strongest party in Florida politics. Florida's
first Republican governor since the Civil War, Claude
Kirk, was elected in 1967. Jeb Bush was elected
the state's 43rd governor in 1998 and re-elected
in 2002. He is the first Republican to be re-elected
governor in Florida's history.
Other individuals have made important contributions
in government. In the 1970s, Governor Reubin Askew
of Pensacola opposed segregation and supported busing
students to schools outside of their district to
end racial segregation. Askew was praised for his
courageous stand, even by those who disagreed. Senator
Barry Goldwater of Arizona wrote to Askew, saying
"I do not agree with your feelings about busing,
but I must tell you I have great admiration for
you, not only for the courage it takes to maintain
your position, but for the forthright, understandable
way in which you discussed it."
Askew was also instrumental in placing the "Sunshine
Amendment" on the ballot. This amendment established
Florida's commitment to open government.
Claude Pepper served Florida in a long and distinguished
career in both the state and national governments.
Pepper became an important spokesperson for the
elderly and worked to protect Social Security.
During his two terms as governor, Bob Graham worked
to preserve Florida's rivers and beaches. He endorsed
laws protecting wetlands and managing growth. As
a United States senator since 1987, Graham has continued
working for the concerns of Floridians. |
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