One year ago today, a man whose disenfranchised religious-political ramblings were obviously a thin cover for some deep-seated personal hatred walked into a place of unity and acceptance, and tried to destroy a community.
He failed.
They always do. Remember that, and they always will.
FRIDAY, JUNE 9:
A Hudson fire station was forced to close to deal with "an aggressive bat colony" that's taken up residence in the building. Like, how aggressive? Eating-your-leftovers aggressive, or throwing-weeknight-after-parties aggressive? Either way, jittery, unpredictable nocturnal roommates suck.
Among the bills signed into law by Governor Rick Scott in a flurry of legislative activity at the end of a jammed-up special session was one shifting the burden of proof to prosecutors in "stand your ground" cases. What does this mean? It means more neighbors and teenagers at stoplights and black kids walking home from the convenience store at night are gonna get shot, is what it means.
SATURDAY, JUNE 10:
Tampa musical force of nature and longtime WMNF DJ Ray Villadonga passed away. Pancreatic cancer took his body, but his passion for all forms of music — and the connections they can inspire — remains vital in those whose lives he touched, and its impact can never be diminished. Rest easy, Rayzilla.
SUNDAY, JUNE 11:
Those Puerto Rican voters who showed up to vote in a non-binding referendum overwhelmingly favored attaining U.S. statehood. To be clear, though, this was just about becoming a state, remaining a territory or returning to independence — there was nothing in there about becoming South Canada, for instance, or Surfable Germany.
And finally, the Tony Awards aired last night on CBS. Without a mainstream-consciousness-invading phenomenon like that one about the rapping presidents, it seemed like a perfect year for Broadway hipsters: "Oh, you probably haven't heard of Dear Evan Hanson — it's a pretty obscure little critics' darling that just won everything."
This article appears in Jun 8-15, 2017.