Democratic lawmakers are calling once again for a Florida slavery memorial after a previous attempt died at the hands of a powerful Republican committee chairman.
The bill would require the Department of Management Services to build a Florida Slavery Memorial near the grounds of the Capitol in Tallahassee.
The sponsors, Miami Representative Kionne McGhee and St. Petersburg Senator Daryl Rousson, are African American.
The measure passed the House last year to wild applause.
But Republican Senator Dennis Baxley of Ocala, a former head of the Florida Christian Coalition, called the measure defeatist and refused to schedule a vote.
Senate leaders haven’t announced whether the bill faces a vote in Baxley’s committee.
