Gov. Rick Scott (Pic via flgov.com)
In response to Gov. Rick Scottâs line-item veto stripping funding for 30 rape crisis centers around the state, a Tampa Bay center issued an open invitation to Scott yesterday.
Scottâs veto had a particular sting because the governor eliminated the funding right in the middle of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
The governorâs office has said that the $1.5 million allotted to Florida Council Against Sexual Violence was âduplicativeâ and that ânobody was able to make it clear to [the governor] why rape crisis centers needed the new funding.â
Michele Wykes, who has been an activist with the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay for the past eight years, announced on Tampa Bayâs WTSP 10 News that she would be willing to personally show Scott why the centers need the additional funding. Currently, the centers rely on fine collections from convicted offenders, which has been decreasing as the stateâs economy worsens.
WTSP reported yesterday:
After seeing the faces of women and men who suffer, Michele says she canât imagine what the governor was thinking. âWe had no idea that he would not understand the need for this money. So, when we received the news today, it was almost a punch to the stomach and we were shocked,â she said.
But, what really shocked Michele and her staff at the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay the most is that the governor would call for this veto during Sexual Assault Awareness Month, a time when rape victims are empowered and honored.
Michele says thereâs only one thing left to do.
She is officially going on record and making a public plea to Governor Rick Scott to change his mind by paying a visit to the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay.
âI would sit him down very calmly and really, truly try to educate him,â Michele said.
Jennifer Dritt, the executive director of the Council Against Sexual Violence, said that â1.2 million women in Florida already have been victimizedâ and the vetoed funding would have helped the centers âdoubleâ the number of services they offer and the number of victims they serve.
Dritt also explained that the program was âthoroughly vettedâ in the Legislature and had âmet the criteriaâ set forth by the governor for member projects. She also said she sent an email to the governorâs office explaining the need for the program.
âWe are disappointed,â Dritt told me earlier this week. âWe are really surprised and frankly stunned â [and] are trying to figure out what the heck happened.â
State Rep. Lori Berman, D-Delray Beach, said yesterday that Scottâs failure to âensure victims of rape are afforded appropriate counseling and needed support simply highlights the Governorâs lack of understanding.â