KISSIMMEE, Fla. — Kissimmee protesters waved signs for the right to wave signs Friday. The city recently banned human billboards, who are the people who stand on street corners waving people into area businesses. But protesters say that ban is a violation of their free speech.
More than two dozen people gathered Friday to protest recent fines issued by the city of Kissimmee for the use of human billboards as advertisement. The tactic is popular all over Central Florida, but not among Kissimmee leaders who say it's a distraction for drivers.
"Sometimes big government hinders the ability of a small business to survive," Kissimmee businessman Rubin DeJesus said.
At least one business owner has been fined $150 three times for violating an existing ordinance.
The employers and workers who gathered along US-192 Friday say human billboards mean jobs through effective advertising.
"The small businesses have to use any type of tool in order to attract people," Osceola County resident Armando Ramirez said.
Ironically, as the sign holders held signs for free speech, the city of Kissimmee decided to send a code enforcement officer to snap some pictures of it all. The code enforcement officer showed up about an hour into the protest and it's obvious the sign holders got the city's attention, because a police officer came minutes later to check for a protest permit.
"They're like the bully, the school bully," DeJesus said.
No one from the city was available to comment, but the city commission has already declined to alter the human billboard ordinance. The protesters hope their show of solidarity might change that.
"The city is working against the small businesses. The small businesses are trying to re-invent themselves because of the hard economic times," DeJesus said.
Most human billboard sign holders are paid minimum wage to do the job and businesses that use them say it is by far the most cost-effective form of advertising for small businesses.
WFTV
