Civility Brevard to host 'Florida Red and Blue,' a talk about legislative issues on Dec. 3

Isadora Rangel | Florida Today

Show Caption Hide Caption Arming teachers: Brevard lawmaker says everyone should be able to defend themselves FLORIDA TODAY Engagement Editor Isadora Rangel discusses the latest legislative session with Florida House District 51 Rep. Tyler Sirois.

State Rep. Tyler Sirois is a conservative who would ban abortions and supports arming school teachers.

Rep. Anna Eskamani is the epitome of a progressive. She worked for Planned Parenthood and lists "feminist research" among her recreational interests in her online Florida House profile.

Dig a little deeper and you will find out they do have a couple of things in common: They are both freshman lawmakers learning to establish clout in Tallahassee and they represent young blood in their parties. Sirois, whose district covers Cocoa, Cocoa Beach, Cape Canaveral and north-central Brevard, is 35. Eskamani, whose district is in the Orlando area, is 29.

They are also both willing to sit with each other and discuss pressing issues facing Florida and the Legislature in the 2020 legislative session starting in January. They will be my guests at Civility Brevard's next event, called "Red and Blue Florida: A talk about hard issues."

The free event will happen at 6 p.m. Dec. 3 at the Center for Collaboration in Rockledge, 1100 Rockledge Blvd. RSVP at bit.ly/CivilityBrevard. Or fill out the form below.

Fill out my online form

Sirois and Eskamani will present Republican and Democratic perspectives on hard topics ranging from guns, teacher pay, abortion, the environment and climate change to legalizing recreational marijuana and increasing the minimum wage. You can send questions for them ahead of time to irangel@floridatoday.com and you will also have the chance to ask questions during the event.

FLORIDA TODAY started Civility Brevard in March to provide a platform for people of different political views to discuss important topics and better understand each other.

Space Coast Young Republicans and the League of Women Voters of the Space Coast are partnering with Civility Brevard on this event. Young Republicans President Eric Hoppenbrouwer is a member of Civility Brevard, along with Democratic Executive Committee member Mel Martin.

Eskamani and Sirois are polar opposites when it comes to politics but they embody exactly what Civility Brevard is all about: listening to other perspectives and having a respectful dialogue about their differences.

The idea for the Dec. 3 event came from a League of Women Voters "Legislative 101" forum I moderated with Eskamani and Sirois in August. It was clear they approached politics from completely different backgrounds, life experiences and ideological perspectives. It was also evident they had chemistry on stage and they understood the concept of respectful disagreement.

More: Civility Brevard: Talk politics with 'other side' over coffee to find 'Common Grounds'

I met Sirois while he was running for Florida House District 51 last year. He was born at Cape Canaveral Hospital and is the executive director of the Office of the State Attorney for Florida's 18th Judicial Circuit.

I once followed him as he knocked on the doors of Cocoa Beach Republican voters during his primary election. In his introductory speech, he told voters he wanted to focus on vocational education and helping President Trump's agenda. He vowed to be a staunch defender of the Second Amendment.

Among his priorities for 2020 are legislation he filed to allow pharmacists to administer flu tests and to add JROTC participation to the factors that determine a school's grade with the state. He also filed a measure to urge the president to support the establishment of a U.S. Space Force and U.S. Space Command in Florida.

Eskamani is an Orlando native and Florida's first Iranian-American elected to public office. Her district doesn't cover Brevard County but her progressive brand has become known across Central Florida. She was featured on the cover of TIME magazine last year among 48 first-time women candidates who were inspired by the Women's March.

An advocate of affordable housing, she filed a bill to allow local government to implement rent control measures. She also introduced legislation to allow communities to ban disposable plastic bags (the state currently preempts those bans) and a resolution to condemn white nationalism and white supremacy.

These lawmakers have different priorities going into 2020. Perhaps they can find some common ground? We will find out.

Isadora Rangel is FLORIDA TODAY's public affairs and engagement editor and a member of the Editorial Board. Her columns reflect her opinion. Readers may reach her at irangel@floridatoday.com, by phone at 321-242-3631 or via Facebook at /IsadoraRangel.