TOLEDO, Ohio — The president of the Toledo chapter of the NAACP echoed a warning from the national organization's president that recent policies passed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis could be harmful to their existence, such as his recent signing of a bill banning gender-affirming care for minors that prompted the NAACP to issue a travel advisory for Florida.
DeSantis also made recent moves to block a high school AP course on African American studies and ban abortion after six weeks.
"The state of Florida has become openly hostile toward African Americans, toward the LGBTQ community," Willie Perryman, president of the Toledo chapter of the NAACP, said.
Perryman said Florida is not alone, mentioning similar legislation going through the Ohio Statehouse.
Those bills are House Bill 6, Senate Bill 83 and House Bill 68. All three of them are in committee and have not yet made it to Gov. Mike DeWine's desk.
Florida's legislation also restricts children's attendance at "adult live performances" such as drag shows, a mainstay at national restaurant chain Hamburger Mary, which has a location in Toledo. An Orlando location of the chain has since filed a federal lawsuit against DeSantis, saying the ban is a sign of continued oppression of the LGBTQ+ community.
Steve Ricker, an owner of the Hamburger Mary's in Toledo, said the restaurant was never supposed to be part of a political agenda.
"I would never want to see anyone targeted for anything, especially political. It feels like this is very political," he said.
He said the restaurant and drag shows are about fun, community and letting people be their authentic selves. They are also a safe space for people in the LGBTQ+ community.
"We don't live in a world that's exclusively male and exclusively female," Dr. Adarsh Krishen, the chief medical officer at Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio, said. "Not everyone is fortunate enough to have the outward expression of who they are match the inward expression of who they are."
Krishen said Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio is no stranger to being attacked, either.
In contrast to efforts around the country that mirror laws passed in Florida, PPGOH is now launching gender-affirming care at its Toledo location.
Clients can get hormone therapy and other testing and treatments, which are not available in some other states.
"I don't feel like we should be targeting anyone, specifically the LGBTQ+ community because they've had hurdles they've had to overcome," Ricker said.
Ricker hopes the Toledo location won't have to deal with what the Orlando location is dealing with because the drag shows are not provocative.
"Most people that do bring their children in here say they have a great time," Ricker said. "You won't see any nudity, you won't see anything vulgar and you're not going to see anybody grabbing any body parts. That's not what this is about."
What it is about, they say, is equality and letting people be happy however they identify.
"Particularly the LGBTQ+ community is at greater risk of being marginalized," Krishen said. "As a result of that, they're at greater risk of both experiencing physical and mental harm and experiencing physical and mental health issues."
Visits to PPGOH for gender-affirming care have increased by 544% from 2021 to 2022, Krishen said.