When They Go Low, Get Loud: A Conversation with Representative Angie Nixon

Meet Representative Angie Nixon — Florida State Representative, mother of five, union organizer, small business owner, domestic violence advocate, and US Senate candidate. She's the woman who brought a pink megaphone onto the House floor, got arrested the next day for a sit-in outside the Governor's office, and showed up the day after that ready to fight again. She's not performing. This is just who she is.

In this episode, we dive deep into:

• Growing up in Jacksonville as a fifth generation native in a household filled with domestic violence — and how that shaped everything
• Being a single mom for 12 years and what it really takes to build a village
• Why she changed her major from pre-med to political science — and never looked back
• Interning for Mia Jones at 24 while pushing Natalie in a stroller and running for City Council
• Opening Cafe Resistance Bookstore in a predominantly Black community — free food pantry, free African American history classes, free tutoring and all
• Why she brought a pink megaphone to the House floor and how she matched it to her outfit on purpose
• Redistricting, gerrymandering, and why your vote is being engineered — explained simply
• The Republican leader who told her she talked too much and had to choose between advocacy and bringing money home — and what she said
• Running for US Senate against an appointed incumbent who won't debate her
• Why "vote blue no matter who" isn't enough and what she actually wants from voters
• What government programs did for her as a single mom — and why those programs are being cut right now
• How to register as a Democrat by July 20th to vote in the August 18th primary

Connect with Representative Angie Nixon:
📱 Instagram, X, Facebook: @angie4fl
🌐 angienixon.com
🗳️ Register as a Democrat by July 20th | Early voting starts August 3rd | Election Day August 18th

This conversation will make you feel something. Melissa walked in not knowing much about politics and walked out a few inches taller. That's what happens when you put the right person in the room.

#HardWigSoftLife #AngieNixon #FloridaPolitics #USSenateFlorida #BlackWomenLead #Podcast #BlackPodcast #FloridaSenate #VoteFloridia #Angie4FL #CafeResistance #WhenTheyGoLowGetLoud #GrassrootsPolitics #FloridaElection2026 #BlackWomenInPolitics #HumanityFirst #PeopleOverPolitics #TampaBay #Jacksonville

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

What's going on, everybody? It's your girl Melissa L. Atkinson, and it's another episode of Hard Wake Soft Life the podcast. I'm super amped for the next guest that I have today. She's the first politician that I have, so I'm I'm hyped about that. Uh, she's a mama five, she's a union organizer, she's a business owner. The lady is running for the U.S. Senate. Like, what does she not do? Everybody, please welcome Miss Angie. Well, representative Angie Nixon. How are you today?

SPEAKER_00 0:24

Thank you, Melissa, for having me. And you can call me Angie for sure. Thank you. Yes, yes, yes. Hard wig, soft lies. Yes, ma'am. Yes, ma'am. I see you too. Your locks are teeth. Yeah, yeah. They're a little soft. They're a little soft.

SPEAKER_01 0:39

Thank you for joining me today, Antil. I'm so happy to be here. This is amazing. Um, so yes, I know I give you like a huge intro, but tell me about you. Like, what is your spiel if you were to give us an elevator pitch?

SPEAKER_00 0:52

Yeah, for sure. So I am a wife, a mother of five, as you just stated, lifelong Floridian, born and raised in Jacksonville. And I'm currently serving my sixth year, my third term as a state representative. I'm also a former union organizer and a small business owner, Rhonda Santis Banned Books. I decided to open up a banned bookstore. And I'm running for United States Senate because I believe right now our country is in total chaos. Corruption is at an all-time high. I feel that if you work one job, you should be able to afford to live in this country. And right now that's just not the case. Meanwhile, we have politicians in Washington, D.C. who are only looking out for greedy billionaires and corrupt corporations, and they're not looking out for hardworking everyday people like us. And so I'm running for United States Senate because I believe that change can't wait. And now is the time that we need to start sending hardworking everyday people to Washington because I believe hardworking folks should shape what our communities look like and what our economies look like. So, and not just these billionaires and these corporations.

SPEAKER_01 2:01

No, I agree. Um, and I appreciate that so much. One thing that I really liked uh the more that I watched your interviews and read about you, you're not just talking about community, you are part of the community.

SPEAKER_00 2:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 2:13

Um, I know that you said you have your banned bookstore, uh, which is it's called Natalie's Nook.

SPEAKER_00 2:18

Well, actually, that was the first uh business that I opened up with my daughter. And so we opened up Natalie's Nook and Candy Shop, and we opened it up in the height of COVID, and so that kind of you know fill it fizzled out a little bit. But now we opened up a bookstore called Cafe Resistance uh Bookstore and Coffee Shop, and it is actually in Northwest Jacksonville in a predominantly black community. We provide really uh good healthy food options, but also books is a third space, and so a lot of groups that do community organizing and some of the unions, uh, they come in and they host meetings and workshops. We host um free African American history classes because, of course, they ban the teaching of true African American history in our in our state. Uh, we also do free tutoring, free mentorship programs for black males so that these young people can have someone to look up to. Uh, we also um do mental health mental health workshops and just it's a plethora of things, but it's a community space. Also, when when we had the shutdown last year and folks with SNAP benefits and people that were furloughed from the government, we gave away free food. We already had a free food pantry, but it grew tremendously because people started donating food so that people can come and per not purchase it, but come and get it. Uh, and so it's just it is just a space where people can learn, they can be in community, it's a safe space. And we have sometimes some uncomfortable conversations to help us progress and really arrive to a better, to a better place as a community.

SPEAKER_01 3:56

Wow. Um wow. So I have a whole bunch of things to ask, of course, but I mean, it's so necessary in the community to have that third space. Um, I feel like, especially for young people, right? Yeah. Right now, there's not a lot of spaces for young people. There's not a lot of spaces that feel uh influential. I think something that really stood out to me was you saying um, you know, the history that's not being taught in school. Yes. And so I graduated class of 2009 high school, which isn't that long ago, but it is a little bit long ago. And even then, I can honestly say that we didn't learn the things that we needed to. Um, I had to take a dedicated course that was provided at my school. That I think it was because it was a predominantly black school, or I don't know if it was a new class. I'd never heard of this class, but it was actually African American history. And I took that class, and that is how I learned a lot of things. Um but wow, okay, so you have Resistance Cafe. Yeah, and you guys hold all of these things at Resistance Cafe. Where do you find the time to do everything? How do you balance everything? Because I'm hearing, okay, my wife, I've got this cafe, I've got all these things going.

SPEAKER_00 5:04

I would have to say I have a very strong village. You know, it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a village to have a state representative who is a mom and a wife and everything. And so my village is super strong. I used to be a single mom for like 12 years, and so my mom really stepped in and helped raise, helped me help raise my daughter. And so Natalie, she just turned 19 on yesterday. And so my husband, he steps up as well, and the community steps up. I I joke that I have village babies because sometimes they go and pick my babies up from school, they help them with tutoring, all different types of things. They they help them with their prom, go out and get prom dresses and that type of stuff because they know that I'm in this fight to help better the community so that parents don't have to work multiple jobs to provide for their children. And so they appreciate that. And their way of like showing appreciation is actually leaning in and helping me collectively raising my kids and being there for my family. It's just amazing, but that's what community is supposed to be about. And it's very unfortunate that the government right now is trying to like divide the community and pit us against one another. And that is because division is profitable for them. When they divide us and allow us to fight amongst each other, that keeps our eyes off of the types of policies that they're passing in Washington and in Tallahassee. They're trying to basically pull the wool over our eyes and not know that they are attempting to end Social Security. They are attempting to get rid of all public schools and privatize them. And they're attempting to basically end health care as we know it, right? Uh and the reason they're doing it is because it's profitable. It's more profitable for them to send our children to through the school to prison pipeline than it is to actually educate them because there's these for-profit prisons that many of them have stocks in, right? And so it's just this cycle, right? They want to end Social Security so that people can continue to work, have to work, so that they can make them more money on top of more money. And if you really look at the lawmakers that attack these social services, look at their campaign donors. Their campaign donors are these corporations that are getting richer. And it it's a slap in the face. And that's why, again, I just believe we need to send hardworking everyday people to Washington, DC.

SPEAKER_01 7:46

Agreed. Um, what do you say to someone who has perhaps lost faith in government, especially here in Florida too, because it can be it's a little challenging. Um, so what what would you say to someone like that?

SPEAKER_00 8:00

Yeah, so for sure, I would tell them that don't give their power away because if they don't exercise their right to vote, they're allowing someone else to decide the type of country, the type of state, the type of community that they live in. And I tell them that we we have real life examples of what happens when you send hardworking everyday people to an office who actually cares about folks what they do. Look at what the mayor of Baltimore is doing. He's investing in people and programs, and he has some of the lowest crime rates that have ever come out of Baltimore and Maryland. And that's because he's focusing on like housing and he's focusing on making sure that the youth have something to do and that they they aren't having an idle mind, which is the devil's playground, you know? And so then you look at the mayor of New York, right? He invested in children and gave them free childcare. That was that allowed them to be able to start going to school ahead of the game, right? Their parents aren't keeping them home. And so they're gonna start first grade in kindergarten on time, and then it also frees up the parents to be able to go to work. Yes. And then if you go to work, you have more disposable income, right? And so you can put that money into the economy and make sure that the small business owners are continually uh thriving, right? And so it is just a win-win. And so that's what happens when you actually elect people who care about people. And that's why I tell people don't give up hope. It's not that politicians are all corrupt, it's that the ones we've been electing, like the majority of them, uh, are not doing the things that we need them to do. And that's why I push back on that vote blue no matter who. Right. No, we need to make sure that we vote for someone, because I am a Democrat, right? We need to make sure we vote for someone who really cares about people. It shouldn't be about your party. We need people who care about people over profits, people over politics, and even people over party.

SPEAKER_01 10:13

No, for sure.

SPEAKER_00 10:14

Humanity first, always like always humanity, compassion for people. Yes, most definitely.

SPEAKER_01 10:20

You know, I identify a lot with that just personally. So um in my past life, I worked in human resources. I worked in human resources for almost a decade. Now, I told you off camera, hey, I'm a felon, right? So I'm the only person that I know that worked in HR that had um, you know, that level, you know, at a felony. But um part of my job as a generalist was to actually put back put the background reports in and then also go over them case by case review and advocate for people sometimes who are turning over a new leaf.

SPEAKER_00 10:54

Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 10:55

Want a new job. You know, if you got arrested like 10, 15 years ago for something that has nothing to do with your job, I don't see the point in not giving you a job that doesn't make any sense. Um, I got in trouble a lot with my director um because I always used to say, we need to build up the staff that build up this organization. Yeah. This is about the staff first. And so if someone asks me a question, I'm gonna be honest, I'm gonna tell the truth, whether you like it or not.

SPEAKER_02 11:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 11:23

Um, because I'm looking out for them, because we should be looking out for them.

SPEAKER_02 11:26

Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 11:27

And so I think on a much larger scale, that's how I identify with you. I'm like, oh gosh, she's doing this in the world. Um, how do your kids feel? I know your daughter, shout out to Natalie, who just turned on to got people up there.

SPEAKER_00 11:40

Shout out, Nat.

SPEAKER_01 11:42

Natalie, very exciting. Like, how did I know how I felt the first year that I was able to vote? I was just shy of being able to vote. This is for you know the presidency, but um Barack Obama was going into office and I was just a little bit shy of being able to vote. How did she feel like to be able to vote for me?

SPEAKER_00 12:00

But you know what? She told me, she's like, mom, you should have ran for governor. And I'm like, what? Like, come on, this is a good position to run for as well. But she's excited. The five-year-old is excited. Uh, the the twins that we have, their twins. Yeah, those are my bonus babies. Um, the twins are kind of like, but then my bonus son, who's 17, he's like, all right, let's go, let's do it. So it's like three out of five. Yeah, they're like all gang ho, but the twins are just like, whatever. It is what it is. How old are they? So they 19, 17, two 13-year-olds, and a five-year-old. Okay, wow. Yeah, I fell in love and pop comes the five-year-old. I'm screaming internally. Well, congratulations. That's the best way to hide. And you know what? The five-year-old is actually my biggest supporter because every time we go somewhere, we'll be in a grocery store, and I'm someone will stop and talk to me, and she's like, Mom, mom, are you gonna tell them? Are you gonna tell her? See, she's Angie Nixon, state representative Angie Nixon. And then her um her teacher told me that every time they go on a field trip and they're talking to someone, and she's like, Do you know my mom? Do you know my mom? That's state representative Angie Nixon, you know my mom. It is so, it is so hilarious.

SPEAKER_01 13:20

I think the age of five has always been my favorite age when it comes to kids, just because that's when they're the most inquisitive. Exactly. Um, they're brutally honest sometimes.

SPEAKER_00 13:30

They hurt our feelings, is what you should say.

SPEAKER_01 13:33

And she is, it sounds like your publicist.

SPEAKER_00 13:36

Yeah, she's definitely my publicist.

SPEAKER_01 13:38

Oh my goodness. I love that. I love that for you. And so I know you were a single mom for a little while, and I know just hearing some of your backstory, I also identified with you that there too. Um, is your was your mom a single mom?

SPEAKER_00 13:50

Sh my mom was a single, uh, a single married mom. Okay, know what that means. So she was married, but she was basically single. Wow. And there was, you know, my dad was former military, he's an army veteran, and I love my dad, but he had some uh mental health issues that were not addressed, and he was abusive uh to my mother. And so grew up in a household filled with domestic violence, and it just, you know, it it caused me to throw myself in work, also becoming a domestic violence advocate, uh an advocate for survivors. My mom was a married single mom, basically. And um, one of the reasons that I fight so hard is because my dad didn't get the mental health resources that he needed. He was a military veteran. Um, he is a military veteran, but he didn't get the mental health resources that he needed. And so he um was very violent, and there was a lot of domestic violence in my home. And so I fight so hard because there was one instance where we were in a car, my entire family, me, my mom, my dad, and my brother. And my dad wanted to kick us, he told us to get out of the car, and my mom begged me and my brother to stay in because she said that he was gonna kill her. Um, because actually he pulled up and I was sitting in the backseat with my mom and he punched her in the nose, and I just saw blood rushing out. And he told us to get out. And we got out, and my mom was begging us not to, and then all I could hear was him just hitting her over and over and over again. And so I told myself then and there, like I would never leave someone, I would never not speak up for someone and stay with them if they're being bullied. And so that's why I fight so hard for my community. I really cannot stand bullies, and I believe Donald Trump, Brian DeSantis, Ashley Moody, those are bullies who are only looking out for their pocketbooks and not looking out for the pocketbooks of the entire community, and that's not that's not cool at all.

SPEAKER_01 15:55

Hmm. I have a question. Yeah. You have a brother.

SPEAKER_00 15:59

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 16:00

Is your brother older?

SPEAKER_00 16:01

He's older, yes. And you that was that's my brother who drove me today. And he brother's Tony. Yes, my brother is Tony. Okay. My brother is Tony, and he's seven and a half years older than me. So yeah. So I'm 42, and he will be 50 at uh in November.

SPEAKER_01 16:17

So I I asked just because I come, well, I come from a single parent household. Um, kind of a rough upbringing. Yeah. Um, I have a brother. Yeah. It's just me and him, but we're six years apart. And I'm but I'm the oldest. Okay. Um, and so I I read that about you and was like, huh, I recognize this kind of like this need to like protect others. And I just wondered, I was like, yeah, is her brother older or younger? My brother's name is Anthony. Oh.

SPEAKER_00 16:44

So it's my brother. Yeah, same thing. My brother's name is Anthony too. And it's so funny because he introduces himself as Anthony, and I'm like, but I've always called you Tony. I've always called you Tony. So, okay, Anthony.

SPEAKER_01 16:57

We don't call our Anthony Tony. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:00

Um, yeah, they don't call me Angie, they still call me Angela. When I went to college, I was like, my name is Angie. I wanted to do like this reinventory of myself. Yeah. And so Angie just stuck.

SPEAKER_01 17:11

So tell me about your like, I guess how you, your trajectory into the political world. Yeah. Girl. And tell me about it. Like, let me get comfortable.

SPEAKER_00 17:22

Okay, so I went to the University of Florida. That's where I graduated from. But when I went there, I initially wanted to be an obstetrician gynecologist because I used to watch the Cosby show. And he Cliff Hustable was, you know, he was a doctor. He was an OBGY-N. And then I got to UF and um I took chemistry lab. And I was like, Kim, Kim 101, nah. Not for your girl. Uh, but I am very nosy. And so I was like, okay, let me do telecommunications news. Like, I like being nosy and asking questions and finding out information. And I was in that major, and we had to take state and local politics and government, and I just fell in love. And I learned about line item vetoes, and I saw how there was a governor that was erasing certain things, creating entirely different appropriate bills and verbiage. And I thought to myself, that's power. And if it's in the wrong hands, it could be devastating for communities. So I changed my major to political science.

SPEAKER_02 18:32

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 18:32

And um I after that, I like just fell in love. And my final semester, I was actually pregnant as all get out. And I made, I, I, I uh interned with a woman by the name of Mia Jones in City Council, District 10 in Jacksonville. And that's that is like how I got involved. And I learned she was a black, she's a black woman. And she uh that was her full-time job, even though it was supposed to be a part-time job. All the other folks who weren't, um, basically who weren't black, they had full-time jobs except black people. And that's really important to note because oftentimes it's so hard for public servants, politicians that are black, if it's a part-time job, to get another job, because people just won't look out for you to have a job there and say, Oh, you can't keep this because I don't want to target on our back. But usually everybody else is good. Um, but uh she actually resigned to run for state rep, and I ran for her seat in city council uh 24 years old. I didn't win, but I just remember I was pushing Natalie. She was one, and I would be pushing her, trying to knock on doors and have conversations. But that opened up doors for me, and I fell in love with campaigning and learning about building power and community organizing. And what's interesting is uh I she then later hired me to become a district aide in Florida House District 14. Yes, I reckon. And I became the state route for Florida House District 14 some years later.

SPEAKER_01 20:10

You know, I love that because it's a perfect example of delayed is not a good idea.

SPEAKER_00 20:13

Yeah, you know, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 20:15

What's for you, it will happen for you. Yeah. Um, and so that's how you got into the political world. And you mentioned things like like power and you mentioned things like uh the bills, and I heard you in an interview say that some bills were taken. So I am, and I know we talked about this off camera, I am not politically versed. So all the questions I ask is like questions that from people who have no idea. Yeah. So I know that you you mentioned in one of your interviews that the other parties sometimes will take bills. How does that work?

SPEAKER_00 20:46

So we oftentimes, like the Democrats, we put forth a lot of us, not all, I want to be clear. Okay. Um, we put forth legislation that could actually help impact and transform the lives of people. And Republicans don't often do that, like very slim to none. But what they will do if we have a good idea, they don't necessarily want to give us credit, especially if we've been vocal and opposing some of their really horrible legislation.

SPEAKER_02 21:14

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 21:14

They don't want us to pass bills, they don't want to provide us with appropriations. And so what they will do is they will take our bills and put them into their omnibus bills or take our bills the very next year and pass them, even if we've been advocating for them for several years. And so I was able to get access to early childhood education expanded by um Representative Grohl, then Representative Grohl. She took my bill and put it in her omnibus bill, which was like this this big, big, large bill addressing early childhood education. And so I am fine with not getting the credit for the expansion of early childhood education on paper. I know that it's something that I did. And uh it was interesting because an early learning coalition uh leader came up to Tallahassee to testify on some stuff and to serve on a panel. And after that committee, he came up to me, he said, I just want to thank you for expanding access to child care. You you helped out a lot of our parents, and the providers are able to get good rates. And I said, Well, you know, they took my bill. And he was like, It doesn't matter. He was like, You did that, you advocated, and they it it it passed after they pulled it over, but it was because of you. And so I am just, you know, so excited about that. And that's what they do oftentimes. They try to punish us if we are too loud and too vocal because they don't want people to know the bad things that they're doing to them with some of these bills. But my first year in office, I spoke with Republican leadership, and they said, Well, what do you want to do? Do you want to be an advocate or do you want to bring money home? And I said, What?

SPEAKER_02 23:01

Right.

SPEAKER_00 23:02

I was like, you should be able to do both.

SPEAKER_02 23:04

Right.

SPEAKER_00 23:04

And they said, no, what do you think you are? Did you think you were gonna come up here and change this? This is how the game works. And so you you talk too much. You you you you thought you were smarter than everyone, you're not like, and this is literally what their the Republican, one of their Republican leaders told me. And so I walked out of that room crying because I was so angry. Because how dare you say I can't be an advocate and bring money home? So I knew right then and there, I made my decision. I was not going to close my mouth and not bring up all the cruel things that they were doing simply for them to provide me with my community with scraps of scraps of scraps because that's what it is. They give us what they want to give us. And I'm not for that. Like we as a community need to demand what it is that we need and what we want, and we need to force these elected officials to allow us to have those types of things. And if they don't, then we need to fire them. And we fire them by like electing other people. But again, that's why I keep saying, like, the vote blue, no matter who, no. Vote for the person who has a proven track record of doing things in the community and fighting for people who are marginalized and speaking up, not just someone who talks a good game, right? Like, because there are some Democrats who uh are basically Democrats a name only. And we need to elect people who just really care about people.

SPEAKER_01 24:40

Hey everyone, thank you so much for tuning in to Hardwig Soft Life the podcast. I want to let you know that this podcast is brought to you by Blackstock Footage. Blackstock Footage is a stock video platform and production agency that's all about real, intentional black representation. If you're a creator or brand looking for visuals that actually reflect our people, our energy, and our stories, this is it. They've got a beautiful library of high quality clips and they're building something that really centers us. Use my code SOFLIFE10 for 10% off of your subscription. And big thanks to Black Stock Footage for supporting Hardwig Soft Life and showing love to creators like me. So that's all news to me. I didn't like not all news to me. It's okay, Melissa.

SPEAKER_00 25:24

This it's news to a lot of folks, and they try to hide it.

SPEAKER_01 25:27

That's so disheartening. You know, it's so disheartening. I mean, and it sounds like honestly, majority of just corporate America, anyways, right? You go somewhere and they're like, well, this is the way we do things, and you can just get with it or get lost. Yeah. Um, and so this leads me to this, right?

SPEAKER_00 25:40

Like this, the pink bullhorn, the infamous bullhorn.

SPEAKER_01 25:44

So I have a question about, okay, first of all, like, did you when I saw it, I was like, did she purposely pick pink? I did.

SPEAKER_00 25:54

Because if I was going to disrupt, then I need to look fly at my bullhorn, my megaphone had to match my pink outfit that I had. Yes, ma'am, I really it was intentional. What's interesting, Melissa, is that was not the first time that I've had to disrupt house proceedings because back in 2022, uh Ron DeSantis illegally and unconstitutionally was trying to remove black congressional districts. They did allow it to happen, but I disrupted proceedings for over an hour that day. And so I am nothing short of consistent in fighting for the people of the state of Florida to have a voice. And so, yes, I said, okay, I don't want them to try to cut me off like they did the last time. So I need a megaphone. I am still. And so I went online and I found a pink megaphone to match my pink outfit, and that is that is what happens.

SPEAKER_01 26:46

When I tell you, I was because initially I was like, okay, let me, you know, do my research, let me do my due diligence, and I'm reading, and it said, you know, I saw the article that that mentioned uh the arrest, right? And then I go, huh? Why did she get arrested? Yes. So I I don't, I don't, okay, let me check. And then I read, and then I saw why you got arrested. So then I said, okay, she's doing her job, like basically. Um and yeah, and then I and then I started seeing the headlines about the pink Megan Horton, and that was just to me, there's just the cherry on top. But no, I I admire that level of it fearlessness to say, hey, no, like even if it's not popular right now to fight for this, this is what I believe in, this is what we need to take a stand on. Where does that like come from? Like, I mean, because I'm not gonna lie, I feel like maybe other people have had this idea, but I don't think anyone's actually executed um, you know, doing this or even doing like the the stand, the not the stand-in, the the sit-in, yes. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 27:48

I mean, where does that come from? I mean, it comes from my elders, and it comes from just the frustration uh of being talked down to for so long in the state legislature and witnessing them actually unconstitutionally and illegally passing legislation to allow the politicians to decide who their voters are instead of allowing the people to decide who they want to elect. And I I was just frustrated and I wanted to wake people up a bit. And we did. Like folks, a lot of folks didn't know what was happening. They didn't know about the gerrymandering, the partisan gerrymandering, the illegal partisan gerrymandering that was taking place. And I did that to raise awareness. So throughout history of not this country, but the entire world, when democracy is falling, the only way that it's been able to be to stop it from falling is when people wake up and they protest and mass mobilizations. And so I am a community organizer. I'm also a former union organizer. That is how the labor movement was able to get 40-hour work weeks and child protection laws, child labor laws. It was because of protesting and mass mobilizations and going on strikes and boycotts. That's how we were able, as black people, to get our right to vote, to be able to integrate into society by mass protest, mobilization. And so as our democracy is falling right now, we're gonna have to do the same thing, even if it makes us uncomfortable. And so I'm trying to wake people up and let them know this. That's why Ron DeSantis had this attack on woke, this stop woke. Yeah, because he wants people sleeping. He wants to ban the ability for us to go out and protest, the way in which we can wake people up and do mass, you know, mass protests and mass mobilizations, trying to make it so that people could uh run folks over in the street if they blocked the street while they were protesting. And it it is them attempting to stay in power and control. And the reason they want to stay in power and control, Melissa, is because they realize that there's a new rising majority of like black folks, like Latinos, people of color, women, folks who've been marginalized, and they realize that we make up this new majority. And if we come into power, they're they are fearful.

SPEAKER_02 30:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 30:36

They're fearful that if this group comes into power, all these marginalized people that they're going to do to them what they've done to many of us for hundreds of years. But history shows that that's not what happens when marginalized communities come into power. When we come into power, we actually lead with love and compassion and humanity and dignity and respect, right? And so again, like looking at what happened with uh the mayor of New York, Mamdanny, like what happened with the mayor of Baltimore, they are doing things to help benefit hardworking people who and folks who've been marginalized and left on the sidelines. And it is it is it is beneficial for everyone. When you do things to benefit marginalized communities, it uplifts the entire community. Absolutely. And so that is what the corporations and a lot of these corrupt politicians don't want because they feel like, you know, they're gonna lose power and they feel like it's gonna take money out of their pocket. There's money to go around, but the problem is that these the riches of the rich, they're hoarding all the money at the top. They're exploiting their workers, not paying them living wages, and then they're getting these tax breaks, right? And these tax cuts. And it's just it's just wild to me that we are continually allowing that. But again, that's because there are some corporate DEMs and establishment DEMs that are okay with this because their campaign donors are the ones that profit and then they donate to their campaign so that they can stay in office. And so it's like we have to call that out and push back on it so that we can change our our country for the better.

SPEAKER_01 32:20

It's a very, it's a vicious, never-ending cycle.

SPEAKER_00 32:23

It it is a cycle that can be stopped, though. Because we saw it stopped in New York, we see it stopped in Baltimore, right? And so we can do this in DC as well.

SPEAKER_01 32:33

Yeah, no, for sure. I mean, and so I've lived here my whole life, basically. I was born in New York but raised here. Okay. Here since I was five years old. So I always say, uh, yeah, I'm a New Yorker, but I'm a Floridian, you know. And um, you can feel the change in within the last, you know, I want to say like five to six years, you can feel it's it's hostile. Um, you know, to a point where my husband and I were considering maybe we should move because we want to bring, you know, a child into the world, and we're like, well, I don't know if this is if this is the the place to stay. Um just because of that feeling, what do you say to people who are like, hey, I'm I don't know how I feel about Florida right now?

SPEAKER_00 33:14

Yeah, yeah. And so that's so sad that folks feel like they have to leave our state. And I would say, like, think about that in of itself. Why are we allowing some people to take away our power and to force us to move from where we want to be, where our family is, where we were raised at. Like, no, this is this is as much our country as it is the folks that are in power right now that are actually harming people. And so we should demand differently. And I would also say, like, just look towards history.

SPEAKER_02 33:53

Right.

SPEAKER_00 33:53

Like, it doesn't have to be this way. We can change it, but we do have to lean into community. We do have to get organized and strategize and actually fight back. That's the only way. And if they leave the state of Florida to go somewhere else, there's still no guarantees that it would change if they didn't lean in, right? Like it's spreading. This hate and division is spreading, and we need to just nip it in the bud, right? And the way we do that is by like not running, but standing up and standing firm. There's actually more of us than it is of them, the hateful people in this country. But we're just too quiet. That's why, again, Michelle Obama said, when they go low, we go high. I'm telling people, when they go low, we get we get loud. We have to get loud and push back against all the hateful, harmful rhetoric and the blatant disinformation.

SPEAKER_01 34:45

You know what? I did see that quote, and I loved it so much because it was like, yeah, you know what? I rock with Michelle Obama. I like her. But I was also like, no, sometimes you do you do have to get loud. Angie, I gotta tell you, I'm really proud of myself. I learned a new word. I learned the word incumbent. Oh, yes, yes. That a person can be appointed and they don't have to be voted in. And that is a person you're going against.

SPEAKER_00 35:07

Yes, Ashley Moody is the person that I'm going against in the general, but I do have a primary. Okay. August 18th. And so if folks like me and like what they hear, they have to be registered as a Democrat because we are in a closed primary state here. They have to be registered as a Democrat by July 20th. So that they can vote for me in the August election. August 18th is election day, but early voting starts August 3rd or so. And so, yes, Ashley Moody is a horrible person. She's just a rubber stamp. Sorry, I just went into that little segue and I went directly in.

SPEAKER_01 35:40

Oh my god, I should go read about her now.

SPEAKER_00 35:43

Like, she's a rubber stamp. She she filed a lawsuit trying to overturn the 2020 elections, right? Like she was one of the ones who wanted to make sure that Trump stayed in office. And so she does his bidding and she rubber stamps everything that he said.

SPEAKER_02 36:01

Because he's stressed out because it's thinking about Trump and her.

SPEAKER_00 36:04

And so, yeah, that's who I'm trying to run against, but I have to make it out of this primary first. Okay. And so I am running against someone who has more name ID than me. Um, excuse me. He is the whistleblower that led to Trump's first impeachment trial. But he just moved here about three years ago. And uh we believe um that it's not um a coincidence. Uh, and you know, he has a lot of the establishment backing. But again, like that's what we got to get away from because the establishment has been in office for so long, and our communities continue to suffer. And so we need to make sure that we are electing people out of this primary who actually go into communities and talk to people. My my opponent does not want to debate me, doesn't want to be in the same room as me. Uh, he's actually turned down quite a few invitations for debates and forums, and also just quite a few invitations from certain uh organizations because they don't necessarily have a lot of money.

SPEAKER_01 37:11

Is that not a requirement though?

SPEAKER_00 37:13

It's not. Okay. It's not, but again, like if if you can't show up to our communities now as an elected official, what would you do if you became an elected official? Correct. Would you just you would be just like Ashley Moody? And so that is that doesn't make sense. We need to have someone who's willing to show up, even if we have a difference of opinions. Like I go to communities where um we have we don't believe the same thing 50% of the time, but I'm still gonna go because I'm trying to represent them, right? And I'm I want to hear from them and hear about what it is that they care about, what their concerns are and what their issues are and how I can help address those. And it's just unfortunate that uh my opponent isn't doing the same right now.

SPEAKER_01 38:03

Well, no, I think it's unfortunate, but also I think that um I think that what you're doing is great, and I think that, you know, ultimately you have to go out with a bang, regardless of what the outcome is. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 38:13

And I just And the bang is me fighting for hardworking everyday folks in the state of Florida, fighting for Floridians. That's what I have to do. That's what I've always done, and that's what I'll continue to do.

SPEAKER_01 38:22

So I do want to let you know you won my vote already. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 38:26

Make sure you register as a Democratic. Yes, that's what I was gonna say.

SPEAKER_01 38:30

Okay, so so let me make sure I got the timeline right, right? Because I've actually never voted in the um midterm. Yeah, no, never. I've never done that. I've only ever voted for the big one, which was the president. And also, because I was um, because I'm a felon and because I was in the um criminal justice system during the majority of my adult life, actually, I've only really ever voted. I'm 35 now, but I've only really ever voted maybe like once or twice, and I never took the liberty to find out things. So now I'm just gonna make sure I understand properly, right? And it's for everybody who's listening or watching, so that way they can do the same thing.

SPEAKER_00 39:08

So by July 20th, yes, you must be registered. We want you to be registered as a Democrat so that you can vote for me.

SPEAKER_01 39:16

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 39:16

Because you have to be registered for a party to vote for someone in a party primary, in the primary. You, but if you are an MPA even during this primary election, you can still vote for nonpartisan races like school boards. School board races are nonpartisan. And there are some commission seats that are nonpartisan, not a lot of them, but uh you have to, if you want to vote for uh the next United States Senator or the next Democratic nominee or Republican nominee, you have to register with that party by July 20th. Okay, and then the time to vote would be at the time to vote is August, and so early voting starts in some places as early as August 3rd, others August 8th, and it goes into August 18th is election day, right? So, yes.

SPEAKER_01 40:05

Wow. I think during this conversation, and I told you, you know, even off camera, I've been feeling a little meh about things that I'm doing, about you know, hey, why am I doing this? Is there a point for this? Like, I'm tired. Maybe I should just stop this, and I feel newly ignited with inspiration. And honestly, I feel like, wow, like if Angie Nixon can go run the US Senate, like I can I can walk in the moon, I can do anything.

SPEAKER_00 40:34

And you know, that that's really important, and that's what having representation that looks like you and comes from your community, that's what it's all about, right? Like, I am very intentional. Like I I've already had tattoos before this, but I got these while I was in office. Okay. And the reason I did it was number one, um, just the meaning. Thank you. These are a Dinka symbols. The meaning behind these, um, this means uh servant leadership, this means God's protection. Um, I'm sorry, this is servant leadership, this is strength and humility, this is a call to war, call to action. But I was intentional about why, about getting them. Number one, because when I grabbed the mic in Tallahassee, I wanted uh the lawmakers, especially the Republicans, to see it, but also getting them here for people who have tattoos, for people who often feel like, oh, I can't do this or I can't do that because I look a certain way. I keep my locks in my hair because it shouldn't matter if you have locks. You should be able to have the same opportunities as everyone else. And so often we've been discriminated against or we've been stereotyped. And I'm letting people know that I can be articulate and I can also just be myself. I mean, I am myself articulately, but like I can I can keep this draw. I can say y'all when I'm on the house floor. You can be yourself. We need more regular people being in the office. Like I can, I'm professional, but I'm also just myself. I'm authentically me, unapologetically. And I want people to know, like, there was one girl, she said, Oh my gosh, you inspired me because you know, your hair, you have locks, and you know, you're not all dressed up and everything. And I was like, wait a minute, you calling me busted? But no, but like, yeah, they don't, they don't see themselves and people that are all suited up and just really like kind of with a stick up their arm, right? Like they want someone who they feel they can talk to.

SPEAKER_02 42:36

Right.

SPEAKER_00 42:37

And that's the type of elected officials we need. People who, people who know what Floridians are up against, right, and who's been there on the on on the front lines with them standing side by side, pushing back against it, right? Not just this, this manufactured candidate, right? Like a real, actual person who has experience with real actual problems. Girl, I know what it's like to walk outside my house and my car is gone in my driveway, and I thought somebody stole it, and it's because your girl didn't pay the bill. Because I had my child and I needed to make sure that I had her epiphen and her albuterol for her asthma, and I needed to make sure that she had enough food on the table and for me to keep the roof over our heads. And so I, you know, I faced foreclosure before. But what helped me was government. Right. Government stepped in. I took, I was able to um uh go into a program that was funded by the uh Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD. And so um they helped me save my home from going into foreclosure, and I was able to pay it back because it was a no interest loan, right? And then the same way with me even being able to purchase my house as a single mom when I was 29, only make $28,000 a year. I was able to get um in I was able to get first-time homebuyers uh down payment assistance as well as closing costs because federal money trickled down to the state government, which trickled down to the local government, and I did their first-time homebuyer program. And those types of programs are being cut under Donald Trump and Ashley Moody, which is that big BS bill that they passed that they call beautiful. Actually, big BS bill. But it cut those types of programs, but it did that because it gave tax breaks to the rich. And so now regular hardworking people that's working hard, right? And not getting paid a lot of money because these billionaires and these corporations don't want to pay them living wages and they just want to exploit them. They don't have access to the same programs that help me be the person that I am today. Right. And so that's why I want to go back to DC to fight for those types of programs to make sure that the rich pay their fair share and that hard-working everyday folks can actually get ahead.

SPEAKER_01 45:04

No, absolutely. So it's funny. I mean, so I'm a realtor as well. Okay. I'm a realtor at Compass. A realtor at Compass as well. And um, so my team is comprised of, what's on my team? I'm part of my friend's team, the DW collective, uh, Derrica Watson, she's amazing. Uh, shout out her. But there are three of us, we're three black women, and one thing that we recently started looking into was uh the affordable housing that's here within the area, because oftentimes we hear from people, I can't afford a house, you know, especially here in Tampa, and they think that these resources are not out there. And they are out there what what we have. We try to like market to um our demographic of people. But yeah, like we've recently built a relationship with the CBC of Tampa. Um, I love them. They're so good to military. But yeah, they have their housing here in Tampa, and that's a major thing right now on our radar, and I've been thinking about that.

SPEAKER_00 45:57

And it should be more though. It could be more if we stop giving these tax breaks to these billionaires. Like, why are we subsidizing the lifestyles of these billionaires? Like they can afford to pay their fair share. There were 88 companies last year, corporations, that made $105 billion. They pay zero in federal taxes. Zero. What? Meanwhile, your girl over here is on a payment plan. I'm on a payment plan, Melissa, to pay the IRS $12,000 back. Uh that's not my thing, and I'm not really good at math. And listen, I I I ain't made $105 billion, but you making me pay $12,000 to the feds? Like, really? That's what we're doing? And they already took some of the taxes away anyway. I paid over $10,000. It's just, it is crazy. But that is that is why I'm saying, like, the the politicians in Washington, they are only looking out for these corporations. Right. And so if we were to send polit, if we were to send people like custodians and nurses and teachers and school bus drivers, warehouse workers, you know, those types of people to Washington, D.C., what type of legislation do you think they would push? Legislation that would actually help that would benefit everybody. Like working people. And so it just makes sense. And so we could we can't continue to send the millionaires and billionaires to Congress and to the U.S. Senate. Like, that doesn't even make sense. That's not they the amount of money, the net worth of those lawmakers in Washington, D.C. compared to just everybody else in this country, it's crazy.

SPEAKER_01 47:39

It's very disproportionate, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 47:40

It's very disproportionate. It is very disproportionate. And so it shouldn't have to be that way. Like people like you should be in in office in Congress. Like you are a returning citizen. No, but really a returning citizen, someone who has, you know, got it out of the mud. Yeah, absolutely. You're gonna pass legislation to help make the lives of people who are struggling right now better because you've been there. And so you they say people need to pull themselves up by their bootstraps. You know, people without bootstraps. We know people without bootstraps or boots at all. Yeah. And so it's like we have to look out for those folks.

SPEAKER_01 48:20

No, absolutely. Um I have learned so much in this conversation. I've had an amazing time talking to you. You know what's funny? I'm actually gonna say one more thing, and then I'm I feel I feel like we're close to time, right? So something that you mentioned about sending people like myself to legislation, um, which is it's funny, but it's not funny because there was something that happened. I can't remember if it was the year of 2016, 2017. It was when they said that people who had felonies or would be allowed to vote again in 2018. 2018, we would be allowed to vote again. And I remember I cried because at that time I was like, oh, I'll be able to vote again. And then they added a stipulation.

SPEAKER_00 49:04

Yep. And after we voted it in, Rhonda Santis added a stipulation, yes, you have to pay your fines and fees. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 49:12

Yes, ma'am. And then I cried again because I said, I don't know when in this lifetime I'm gonna be able to vote again for anything. And I think that's a lot of the reason too why I even stopped caring about maybe because you're trying to survive day to day anyways, right? Uh that you can't think too far outside of what you've got going on. But I remember being so distraught over that. And I reinstated my right to vote in the year 20, let me see, I paid everything in 2021. In 2021. Um only after I'd gotten arrested on a violation of probation that was something that was like this was something you guys missed. You just needed a certificate from me. It's been in my house, could ask me to bring it. Like, I don't know why I'm getting arrested, but you know. So that's what happened, and then I finished my my entire probation, and then um I said, you know, I'm paying these people everything because I don't want to get arrested for anything that's out of my control. And by virtue, you know, of course, you reinstate your your right to vote that way. And um, yeah, I think about that time often. Yeah, I think about those things that make you feel like you're getting ahead, but then you're not. And sitting down with someone like yourself who's like, no, I'm very people focused, you know, human first, and learning about things that I'm ignorant to during this conversation. I'm I'm really excited. Um, I'm hyped for the rest of your campaign.

SPEAKER_00 50:41

Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 50:42

You're absolutely welcome. I'll be watching. I got my popcorn ready. I'll make sure I'm registered. Yes. I'll make sure everybody is registered.

SPEAKER_00 50:50

As Democrats, July 20th. As Democrats. And tell them to vote for me because, you know, I am being out, fundraised, because again, the the establishment, they want the same thing to happen. They want the status quo. And you know, Melissa, what you said is so important to highlight. That's what they want. They want to, they want to snatch your hope away.

SPEAKER_02 51:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 51:09

They want to snatch your hope away. So you feel like nothing will ever change and you're just a victim of circumstance. But like, this is our country. We should be able to shape the type of communities and economies that we want.

SPEAKER_01 51:23

I agree.

SPEAKER_00 51:24

And so I'm so excited that you are a little hopeful. I left you with a little bit more, with a little more hope.

SPEAKER_01 51:31

You know, I'm gonna be a few inches taller coming out of this room. For sure, for sure. Angie, where can the people find you? I want to I want you to look at your camera and tell them where do we find you.

SPEAKER_00 51:42

So folks can follow me on all social media platforms at Angie4FL. That's at A-N-G-I-E-F-O-R-F-L, and then visit my website at angie nixon.com. Look, y'all, we are a grassroots people power campaign, and so we need help with folks volunteering to knock on doors, to make phone calls, as well as uh to make a donation. So I'm super excited. Thank you for having me on Hardwig Soft Life. Yes, mm.

SPEAKER_01 52:10

Let me see. Do we use this?

SPEAKER_00 52:12

It ain't on, it's not on that. It's just a fab night. Just yelling through it hard wig soft life.

SPEAKER_01 52:20

Thank you so much. Thank you. And I think that's it, we're good.