Jan. 4, 2011, Florida’s new governor began his inaugural breakfast here on FAMU’s campus at the Al Lawson center.
This breakfast stirred up a lot of murmurs amongst FAMU’s current and former students. Many felt as if Governor Rick Scott’s prayer breakfast should have been held at a location where individuals who shared his views were in more abundance.
Others like Allen Thompson Jr., a former student at FAMU, felt that the Al Lawson center was a public venue and anyone who rents it out can and should.
Thompson said, “The Rick Scott breakfast will also allow FAMU to receive more media coverage all across Florida in a more positive light.”
President Ammons said in an interview, “What a way to start 2011. FAMU stands ready to assist the Scott-Caroll administration in its efforts to make Florida a much better place to live and work.”
As a FAMU student I see both sides of the issue. To many Rick Scott was not the candidate that most FAMU students voted for nor does he represent the views that most students on campus have. Yet he is still our governor and we at FAMU should feel honored and privileged our new governor hosted his first prayer breakfast on our campus.
Rick Scott will be our governor for the next four years we should just accept him and prepare to assist him in any way. Our university president has an open mind and we, as students of a place of higher learning and broader horizons, should as well. By looking at this issue with rose-colored glasses we will never get the full view.
We should be celebrating Lt. Gov. Jennifer Caroll, because she is the first black female lieutenant governor, and I feel that triumphs all. Although she is a Republican she has taken dynamic strides to get where she is today.
That is something we here at FAMU should commend and praise her for, not overlook. She is leading the way and carving a path for many other minority women to follow in years to come.. Even our beloved university president and others have honored her in various ways.
As future productive American citizens of this country we should not concern ourselves with such minute disputes such as whether Rick Scott should hold his breakfast here on FAMU’s campus but rather focus our attention on more serious and demanding issues.