The Dream Defenders are on a mission to #takeoverfl and after 20+ straight days in the capitol of Florida their presence is most certainly felt. What do they want? They want Governor Rick Scott to call a special session. Why? The Governor has the power to call a special session to enact what the Dream Defenders termed Trayvon’s Law which would repeal stand your grand, ban racial profiling, and end the school-to-prison pipeline. Governor Rick Scott met with the leadership of The Dream Defenders on July 18, 2013 where he listened to some of their concerns and personal stories. Nevertheless he declined to call a special session. Instead he said he would call for a statewide day of prayer for unity. As a result The Dream Defenders decided to stay at the Capitol.
The crowd at the Capitol
In the days since that meeting with the Governor several celebrities (Harry Belafonte stopped in and Jessie Jackson spent the night.), clergy, organizations, and youth from all over the country have visited the Capitol in order to show support to The Dream Defenders. A group of my friends had a conversation in which it was decided that we would camp out in the Capitol with The Dream Defenders. Our rationale? If people from all over the world could reach out to The Dream Defenders and show support for the stand they’re taking then we were obligated to do the same being that we live in Florida and those crucial issues directly affect us. So we put our actions where our mouth was and hit I-10 to Tallahassee, Florida to spend the weekend with The Dream Defenders.
Author Devin D. Coleman, NuLeaf Body Care Co-Founder Yolanda Webster, Author Renata A. Hannans
When we arrived we were so excited! I remember going through the security check point with my bags. I took a couple things that I felt I would need to make me a little comfortable and hold my attention such as my laptop, kindle, paper and pen (I’m a writer at heart), sleeping pad, pillow, and light blanket. After I made it in I saw some others that I knew from different seminars and trainings that I’ve took advantage of over the past year and a half and all of a sudden it turned into a family affair if you will.
Representatives of the Miami Workers Center
As 5pm approached I looked at Renata Hannans (Author of P.S. Never Give Up Hope: Advice from Youthful Offenders to Young America) and Yolanda Webster (Poet, Co-Founder of NuLeaf Body Care, and an Advocate for the Youth) with a look of excitement, uncertainty, and knowing that now we were in the thick of things. We found our spot on the hard floor of the Capitol and set up our camp.
Renata’s Campground
Preparing my sleeping space. A Coleman mat for a Coleman!
Yolanda in her make shift office next to Harold of Florida New Majority
The rest of Friday was spent with various people/organizations identifying who they were, why they were there, what they do. That session ended with Senator Bullard gave an inspiring speech on Friday night. Afterwards dinner was served and then we continued getting to know one another and networking.
Senator Bullard addressing the crowd.
Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner Station
It was amazing to get to know people from all over. We discussed similarities, differences, what worked, and what didn’t. It was definitely a family atmosphere and you saw plenty of smiles and laughs shared. From the outside looking in you would have thought everyone in there had been together for years.
Harold Pendas of FNM leading a chant.
Saturday came and the Capitol was closed for normal business. You would think that it would be a day of rest and relaxation right? Wrong! Time is a valuable commodity and it was used wisely. So immediately after breakfast workshops and trainings began touching subjects such as The School to Prison Pipeline (Florida is rumored to have the largest one), Mass Incarceration, and Youth Criminalization just to name a few. Plenty of knowledge was dispersed at those workshops. As a matter of fact by the time I looked at my time piece it was dinner time. After dinner we had an exercise in which we did something that often times get neglected. We told people that we appreciate them and the sacrifice that was made in order to be there at that moment! It was so powerful it ended with us giving an off key rendition of “Lean on Me”! It was an epic moment to say the least. Then we had a SKYPE session with a group of supporters across the country literally!
Skype Session
Sunday came faster than we thought it would. Renata woke me and Yolanda up at 7:00 am. We had plans to get on the road early little did we know our plans would change. After we packed up our belongings we began to say our goodbyes and were overcome with a melancholy feeling. It was time to go but we wished we could stay in the atmosphere just a little bit longer. So reluctantly we left the Capitol close to 1:00 pm and only after we promised to stay in touch and return.
I must say if you heard our conversation or our inner thoughts you would see how that was truly a life changing experience.
