State Rep. Angie Nixon, a Democratic Socialists of America member now running for U.S. Senate in Florida, is facing renewed attention over past comments in which she described Gov. Ron DeSantis’ “stop woke” messaging as a “racist dog whistle.”
The remarks were made during a 2023 interview on One Take Live, in which Nixon discussed DeSantis’ framing of Florida as a place where the “woke” agenda “goes to die.”
“And now he has this stop woke agenda that he is going around the country talking about when we know that’s nothing more than a racist dog whistle,” Nixon said. “Stop woke… That is just a term that is devaluing black people.”
Nixon went on to argue that Republicans were using the term as cover for other intentions. “We know that you just want to remove woke and replace it with black people, and look, if Florida is where woke or black people go to die, that’s evident by what just took place on Saturday,” she said.
Nixon has made other pointed comments about Republicans in past interviews. In a clip shared by RNC Research, she said she could not work across the aisle with GOP colleagues because, in her words, “They are literally trying to kill us, and they are doing it on camera.” She has also said a nosebleed she experienced was tied to the “trauma” of working with Republicans.
Nixon has repeatedly argued that the “stop woke” push in Florida is politically motivated, saying Republicans are seeking to hold onto power in the face of what she describes as a growing coalition of Black, Latino and other marginalized voters.
“Ron DeSantis had this attack on woke, this stop woke, because he wants people sleeping,” Nixon said, describing the effort as an attempt to limit protest activity and “stay in power and control.”
“And if we come into power, they are fearful… They’re fearful that if this group comes into power, all these marginalized people, that they’re going to do to what they’ve done to many of us for hundreds of years,” she said.
Nixon has also criticized state limits on diversity, equity and inclusion training for Florida teachers, calling the restrictions frustrating.
Nixon is seeking the Democratic nomination to challenge Sen. Ashley Moody, a Republican, in Florida’s U.S. Senate race.
