Florida GOP Official Tries To Blame Hackers For Racist Facebook Post About Andrew Gillum
Photo Credit: City of Tallahassee
A local Florida Republican is in hot water for a racist Facebook post about Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, the Democratic nominee for governor and the first black man to be nominated for the role by a major party.
Orange County Republican Party State Committee chairwoman Kathy Gibson's response has been to deny she made the post at all and blame it on hackers.
"[M]y Facebook account was hacked. I am not a racist. I never have been," said Gibson, who manages GOP voter outreach in the Orlando area. She added, "You know I have enemies ... After I won, there's been one particular person who has tried to paint me as a forever Trumper, as someone who is racist and hateful or whatever."
Gibson's now-deleted post, first reported by Politico on Tuesday, was a meme which falsely stated "Andrew Gillum says when he wins governor of Florida ... 'his people' will be getting 'paid back' for slavery." Below the meme, she wrote, "Just what every Floridian is dreaming of. Going Backward, not forward. If anyone living in Florida at this time was a slave holder, had family that were slave holders or committed acts against African Americans please let Mayor Gillum know so he can bill you & your Family."
Local county officials in Florida are frequently colorful characters. Last year, it emerged that the newly-elected secretary of the Broward County Republican Party once savagely beat a young woman with a hammer and left her for dead. Local GOP officials initially tried to fire him, but ultimately ruled he could stay on.
Rep. Ron DeSantis, Gillum's GOP opponent for governor, has called on Gibson to resign, saying the Facebook post was "disgusting." But DeSantis is currently mired in his own racism scandals following his comment on Fox News that Gillum would "monkey" up Florida's finances, and revelations he had been an administrator for a virulently bigoted Facebook group.
Ever since Gillum, a staunch progressive who advocates health care expansion, won the Democratic nomination in a surprise upset last week, the contest has been tainted with racial tension. Last week, an Idaho-based neo-Nazi group sent racist robocalls to Florida voters, drawing widespread condemnation.
For his part, Gillum has stated he wants to move past personal attacks and get back to the issues. "I'm not going to follow him and Donald Trump down into the swamp of politics. My grandmother used to say, 'When you wrestle with pigs, you both get dirty, but the pig likes it.' I'm not going to be able to compete and win in a pig fight with these guys."
