Politics

Orlando hotel canceled Arab foundation’s event over Middle East conflict

Published

2 weeks ago

January 17, 2025

The federal government has settled with an Orlando hotel that was sued for discrimination after the hotel canceled the Palestine-supporting Arab America Foundation’s annual conference in November 2023.

The DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Orlando at SeaWorld canceled the group’s summit one week before it was scheduled. Hotel officials raised concerns the event would bring up support for Gaza and had fears about a public backlash and safety concerns at the hotel, according to the lawsuit that was quickly resolved.

“In light of the ongoing war in the Middle East, Hotel officials did not want an Arab group holding an event at the DoubleTree,” read the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court’s Orlando division. “This was the first time in years that the DoubleTree had canceled an event against the wishes of the customer.”

On Thursday, the same day the lawsuit was filed, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said it had reached a settlement with the hotel. If approved by the court, the hotel would be required to issue a statement to the foundation that all guests and groups are welcome, establish a written anti-discrimination policy, train employees and hire a compliance officer to oversee the consent decree from the DOJ over the next two years.

“No one may be denied the right to use hotel facilities because of their national origin,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division in a prepared statement. “The Justice Department is committed to protecting the rights of all people to be free from discrimination in hotels and other public accommodations around the country.”

The DoubleTree is a 1,042-room hotel that contains ballrooms and meeting rooms for big events in Orlando’s tourism corridor.

In July 2023, the hotel and the Arab American Foundation signed a contract to host the foundation’s summit from Nov. 3-5, 2023.

About 250 people already pre-registered to attend the event, which was supposed to include speakers, networking opportunities and events celebrating their Arab heritage, according to the lawsuit.

A few weeks before the summit, the hotel’s business leaders began to grow cold feet about hosting the event that would “feature segments” about Gaza, according to the lawsuit. Hilton requested no DoubleTree or Hilton logos appear on the podium or during the summit.

The hotel’s director of sales wrote the senior events manager that the hotel was receiving calls from people surprised the hotel was hosting an event for Arabs.

“(The) Hotel is becoming concerned that this event could cause unreasonable disruption or risk to the health and safety of our guests, employees, and the property,” the email said.

In reality, the hotel only received two calls about the summit.

“These calls were routine and did not raise any concerns for DoubleTree staff. And in fact, the Hotel never received calls voicing safety or security concerns, referencing media coverage, or expressing ‘surprise’ that the Hotel would host the event,” the lawsuit said.

The Arab group also hired four off-duty deputies with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office to provide extra security, something many event organizers do, the lawsuit said, arguing there were no valid safety issues for the conference to go on as planned.

The DOJ obtained text messages behind the scenes from the hotel’s business leaders as the summit date got closer, according to the lawsuit.

“Why would we postpone? Is it better for us to just cancel and be done?” the general manager texted.

The director of sales responded back, “We would simply state to reschedule to another time that is more appropriate. Or we just straight up tell them to cancel the event and not soften it with an offer to reschedule.”

“It’s to soften the blow, but we really wouldn’t rebook,” the hotel manager wrote.

“Exactly,” the director of sales wrote. “But we don’t have to soften it.”

“My vote is forget softening, cancel the event and deal with any repercussions,” the general manager texted. “I would like this resolved so we can report back to Hilton that this is done.”

On Oct. 27, 2023, the hotel officially canceled the event and told the foundation the conference was nixed because of “potential risk” to hotel staff and other hotel guests “under the current circumstances and world climate.”

The foundation asked the hotel to change its mind and still host the conference, but the hotel refused to reverse the cancellation or reschedule the summit for another date.

The lawsuit said, “The day after cancelation, the General Manager continued to search for ‘safety and security’ risks to justify the DoubleTree’s decision. He texted the Director of Sales, ‘We are on the correct side of this one,’ referring to the cancelation. The General Manager referenced the actions of Hamas and ongoing violence in the Middle East and said ‘that this (is) not the right time to attempt to safely hold a meeting at our hotel.’ He added, ‘It has always been about safety and security.’”

The hotel and the foundation did not respond to Florida Politics’ requests for comment Friday.

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Politics

Tom Fabricio measure would keep some complaints against law enforcement, correction officers confidential

Published

4 minutes ago

January 31, 2025

May Greene

Law enforcement officers and correctional officers could have certain complaints lodged against them kept off their records if a new bill filed Thursday passes.

Miami Lakes Republican Rep. Tom Fabricio’s measure (HB 317) would exempt records of any investigations made into complaints against a law enforcement officer or a correctional officer from their personnel file under certain conditions.

Complaints filed against officers would be required to be given under oath and submitted in writing, and if an officer is subject to an interrogation that could lead to disciplinary action, then all information related to the investigation would have to be given to the officer or their representative before any interrogation into the allegations could begin, according to the bill.

That would include the names of the person or persons who filed the complaint, all witness statements, and any supporting evidence such as incident reports, GPS locator information, and video and audio recordings.

Florida statute currently states, “all information obtained pursuant to the investigation by the agency of the complaint is confidential,” and is exempt from public record until the investigation “ceases to be active” or until the agency decides whether to file charges against the officer.

The measure would amend that statute, adding that the officer be “provided a copy of the complaint signed by the complainant under oath before the effective date of the action.”

Current law already allows officers facing disciplinary action the right to address the findings with their respective agency heads before any disciplinary action can be imposed.

However, the new measure would allow such records to be left out of an officer’s personnel file if the investigation into their conduct did not end in disciplinary action. Furthermore, the existence of the investigation would not affect an officer’s ability to be promoted, get a pay raise, or receive a commendation.

Under the bill, the contents of both the complaint and the investigation would remain confidential until a final determination is made by investigators. The bill does not guarantee continued employment for officers under investigation.

The bill would further protect law enforcement and correctional officers protections by establishing penalties against those who make false complaints. Under the bill, someone found guilty of filing a false complaint could be charged with a third-degree felony, punishable by up to five years in prison.

If passed, the bill would become law on July 1.

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Gov. DeSantis ready to ‘get in the game’ of migrant transfers to GITMO

Published

1 hour ago

January 31, 2025

May Greene

President Trump has ordered the Cuba-based detention center to be prepped for full capacity as part of his deportation push.

Saying Guantánamo Bay is a “hell of a lot closer” to Florida than Martha’s Vineyard, Ron DeSantis reiterated interest in sending migrants there in accordance with a Donald Trump executive order.

“I think it’d be a great place, quite frankly, to have criminal aliens,” DeSantis said Friday in Destin, adding that Florida is “going to be able to assist” moving undocumented immigrants to the base in Cuba.

The Governor has made this case all week that the state is a logical launching pad for deportations.

DeSantis posted to social media Wednesday that he’s “happy to send flights from Florida down that way with deportees in tow,” in the wake of Trump saying he’s telling the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security to “begin preparing the 30,000 person migrant facility at Guantánamo Bay” for an influx of undocumented immigrants.

“What better state to take advantage of that than the state of Florida,” he told podcaster Dave Rubin Tuesday.

DeSantis also said this week “deputized” state forces who can “make the same decisions” as Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the Border Patrol could also “take them back to Haiti or the Bahamas or wherever they are coming from, right on the spot” if they “intercept them on the sea.”

The Trump Executive Order calls “to expand the Migrant Operations Center at Naval Station Guantánamo Bay to full capacity to provide additional detention space for high-priority criminal aliens unlawfully present in the United States, and to address attendant immigration enforcement needs … in order to halt the border invasion, dismantle criminal cartels, and restore national sovereignty.”

It does not contemplate a state role in extradition or extraterritorial transport.

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GOP strategist Justin Hollis joins Weatherford Capital, will lead growth and partnerships

Published

2 hours ago

January 31, 2025

May Greene

Justin Hollis, a veteran consultant and political strategist, is joining Weatherford Capital as Vice President of Growth and Partnerships, the firm announced this month.

Hollis previously served as a partner at The Southern Group, one of the state’s top lobbying firms by compensation and one of the top firms in the southeastern U.S. There, he forged valuable relationships with private investment firms and elected officials, making him an asset to Weatherford Capital, a firm co-founded by former Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford.

“Justin’s exceptional leadership, keen understanding of policy, and unwavering commitment to excellence align with our mission,” said Weatherford, the firm’s managing partner. “As our portfolio companies continue to grow and transform industries, Justin will play an integral role in advancing that growth with his experience and relationships.”

Before his work with The Southern Group, Hollis was the executive director of the Beer Industry of Florida, where he advocated for the state’s largest beer distributors in one of the state’s most complex regulated industries.

“I am thrilled to embark on this exciting new opportunity with the exceptional team at Weatherford Capital,” Hollis said. “Their investments are propelling some of the nation’s greatest innovations forward and yielding strong returns for their investors. With my experience in leadership, policy, and business development, I aim to advance those initiatives further.”

Hollis will be based in Weatherford Capital’s Tampa office, a short drive from Lakeland, where he lives with his wife Rachel and their two children.

In addition to his service with The Southern Group and the Beer Industry of Florida, Hollis was one of former Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam’s longtime strategists. He also previously chaired Putnam’s political committee, Florida Grown PC, throughout Putnam’s unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign in 2018. With Hollis as chair, that committee reeled in more than $29.5 million in contributions.

Hollis quietly announced his departure from the Beer Industry of Florida earlier this month when the organization announced it was merging with the Florida Beer Wholesalers Association.

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