Florida Man Starts a Movement
Guest blog written by
Erika Lakey, ENP | 911 Professional for 14 years in Central Florida
Usually when we see a headline that starts with “Florida Man…” we think, “oh, this is gonna be a good one.” In this case, it’s more than a good one; it’s revolutionary. The #IAM911 Movement started in 2016 by a Florida Man, and it has spread like wildfire throughout the US and the world.
In case you haven’t met Florida Man Ricardo Martinez, he started his 911 career as a dispatcher in Polk County, FL at Frostproof PD. Actually, Ricardo is an Honorary Florida Man because he is originally from Michigan. In 2016, Ricardo was attending the National APCO Conference in Orlando, FL and there he learned about the 911 reclassification efforts to change the federal definition from “clerical” to first responder. When the proposal was rejected, APCO and NENA sought to inform the public of this issue. Ricardo had been telling dispatch stories for years through the Within the Trenches Podcast, and he realized he could assist by asking everyone to share their story. He decided on a concise format that punches you right in the gut. That's the main intention; an in-your-face approach of what 911 deals with every minute of every day. The hashtag of #IAM911 is used for social media purposes and as a signature line of what this movement is doing: showing the world what 911(or 000, 111, 999, depending on where you live) dispatchers deal with on a daily basis.
The #IAM911 Movement also became a form of therapy. 911 dispatchers have a sense of pride and are fiercely private. We tend to hold it all in because we don’t want to bother our family or friends. Instead, what happens when we let the trauma and stress build up, day after day, year after year? We start to realize that we do need a safe place to express those calls that we’ve been holding onto. We take those previous calls and roll them around inside our minds, wondering if there could have been a different outcome if we had just done or said something else. In a way, putting words on paper (or the digital equivalent) has been the missing piece of the puzzle that the public needed to fully comprehend our jobs. The emotional toll speaks volumes in ways that data and research never could. Together, data and stories paint the landscape of why 911 needs to be reclassified.
The 911 industry has one foot in Next Generation 911, and one foot in the legacy system (the antiquated phone system from 1968), so the elected officials need to understand, “This ain’t ya momma’s 911”. The technology continues to evolve and change on a daily basis, so the support system has to be built up to coincide with the evolving infrastructure, too.
It is 2023 now, and the state of Florida is on the brink of becoming the 19th state to have 911 dispatchers classified as first responders. FL APCO and FL NENA are working harder than ever to reach all of the Florida 911 dispatchers, asking them to step up and volunteer to speak at local legislative delegation meetings. We need our elected officials to understand why it’s paramount for 911 dispatchers to be added to Florida State Statute 112.1815’s definition of first responder. We have to fight for the mental health support so desperately needed in this occupation.
Florida State Representative Jim Holcomb is a co-sponsor of House Bill 291, and he has asked for “compelling stories to present to the Committee”. For a brief moment, I worried that we would not have enough time to ask 911 dispatchers for their stories before the Sessions started in Tallahassee in a few weeks. Then I remembered the #IAM911 Movement has been collecting and sharing these stories for 7 years now. I immediately reached out to Ricardo and asked for his blessing to share the stories with Florida’s Representatives and Committees.
Ricardo lit the torch in 2016, and now we have to keep the flame alive and let it burn a little brighter. We will keep the torch burning and continue blazing the trail for the remaining 31 states to become classified as first responders. (Honorary) Florida Man will not stop until we are recognized nationally as first responders.
