City of Sarasota officials are taking action after a racist note was found at the Art Ovation Hotel last week.
The incident has cast somewhat of a dark cloud over the city.
“You know we’ve got articles in the New York Post and you know, people’s favorite town now, something ugly happened,” said city manager Tom Barwin.
The note was written on the hotel’s note pad. It read ,”You’re a n****.”
It was discovered by Frank Davis and his family on 4th of July.
“I was just shocked,” said Davis.
Barwin said anything that appears to be a hate crime should be reported to their office immediately.
“It was an opportunity, a learning moment to tighten up and learn what other things we can collaboratively within our community to try and make sure everyone is welcomed here,” he said.
On their Facebook, The Art Ovation Hotel management wrote:
We understand and share the concerns of our Sarasota community and our guests regarding recent events. We sincerely apologize for the family’s experience and have shared our apologies directly with them. Due to the concerning nature of the situation, we immediately launched a thorough internal investigation – including checking the electronic memory of the guest room locks. Our investigation has found no evidence that any associate of the hotel was involved in this incident. Additional findings have indicated that the offensive note appears to have already been in the room, likely left by a previous occupant, when the guests checked in and was not directed at the guests in any way.
We will continue to work closely with the Sarasota Police Department as they pursue this matter.
The safety and security of our guests is of paramount importance to us and we remain committed to providing an environment where all feel welcome. Again, we apologize to all those impacted by this experience and regardless of the source of this note, we deeply regret that any guest of ours had to endure this situation.
Hotel and city authorities concluded the note was left by previous guests, who they said were belligerent during their stay and asked to leave.
Barwin said, “We saw everything that happened as a consequence of ignorance and poor behavior.”
Barwin hopes by taking this action, they can dissolve any issues quickly before it turns into a fire storm.
“Everyone involved has to work really hard to try understand and imagine someone’s perspective and I think that’s part of the reason the family wasn’t satisfied initially,” he said.
The mayor initiated this effort so that the city can address them immediately and work with appropriate community groups to stop the spread of hate and continue to advance the diverse cosmopolitan community we live in.
According to officials, the city has had five or six hate crimes reported within the last 4 years.
In a statement from Frank Davis:
While we are relieved that a person of interest has been identified in the incident at the Art Ovation hotel, we are still extremely troubled by the increasingly frequent use of historically venomous words that are generally intended to terrorize, intimidate, slander, disenfranchise, and disparage an entire group of people.
No matter the specifics, it is also concerning that the hotel failed to protect my family from exposure to lewd, crude, and offensive messaging on their property in general, and in my room specifically.
We are encouraged however by the significant positive actions of the Marriott executive team and the Mayor of Sarasota in response to this sad occurrence and we have graciously accepted Marriott’s apology.
Regardless of the subsequent investigations and the final outcome, we still plan to revisit the Sarasota area again in the not too distant future.
