{"id":16008,"date":"2025-10-22T18:21:15","date_gmt":"2025-10-22T18:21:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/16008\/"},"modified":"2025-10-22T18:21:15","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T18:21:15","slug":"naacp-opposes-fsu-tmh-merger-country-club-golf-course-sale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/16008\/","title":{"rendered":"NAACP opposes FSU-TMH merger, country club golf course sale"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"text | article-text\">TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) &#8211; The Tallahassee branch of the NAACP has officially denounced the Tallahassee Memorial Hospital and Florida State University merger, along with the sale of the country club golf course.<\/p>\n<p>FSU-TMH Merger<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | text-start article-text\">The civil rights organization cites several reasons in a Wednesday press release for its concerns about the FSU-TMH merger. The document begins with the mention of a FAMU hospital that, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hmdb.org\/m.asp?m=79623\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.hmdb.org\/m.asp?m=79623\">according to the historical marker database<\/a>, operated from 1911 to 1971. The NAACP said this was the first teaching hospital in Florida that served African Americans. <\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cThat hospital was defunded and ultimately closed under the guise of integration, as state officials and the TMH Board redirected support away from FAMU\u2019s medical programs. Today, history threatens to repeat itself,\u201d the Tallahassee NAACP wrote.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The group fears that the merger will \u201cextend to taking over or absorbing FAMU\u2019s health education.\u201d They wrote that the merger marginalizes FAMU\u2019s health programs as it limits \u201cclinical and internship opportunities necessary for graduation and accreditation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The group also argues that many of TMH\u2019s patients are African Americans and the NAACP is \u201cnot confident\u201d that an FSU academic hospital could \u201cuphold that same level of community commitment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The Tallahassee NAACP continued and said that an FSU-controlled hospital \u201ccould create a monopoly on care.\u201d They pointed towards Gainesville\u2019s academic hospital (UF Health), where they claim the institution dominates the healthcare landscape \u201cto the detriment of community access and competition.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Tallahassee\u2019s NAACP is also worried that TMH would be under the direction of Gov. DeSantis and Florida\u2019s Surgeon General, with FSU under control.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cGiven the recent, widely criticized and scientifically unsound statements made by the current Surgeon General regarding vaccines, this should alarm anyone who values public health, medical integrity, and community trust.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">They propose that the FSU College of Medicine should be a joint college with FAMU. The group also wrote that the transfer should not happen without a public vote. <\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cThe people of Tallahassee deserve answers. FSU and the City must directly and transparently explain how this proposed transfer benefits the entire community\u2014not just the university.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The release finished by urging Tallahassee to \u201cWAKE UP.\u201d <\/p>\n<p class=\"text | text-start article-text\">During a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wctv.tv\/2025\/10\/22\/famu-tsc-secure-seats-fsu-tmh-merger-talks-academic-health-center\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.wctv.tv\/2025\/10\/22\/famu-tsc-secure-seats-fsu-tmh-merger-talks-academic-health-center\/\">Wednesday press conference,<\/a> Florida State President Richard McCullough announced that FSU has reached an understanding with FAMU and TCS, giving both colleges a seat at the table in the merger.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">McCullough also spoke to concerns about indigent care saying that FSU-TMH will continue the same level of existing indigent care and likely expand it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | text-center article-text\">More Tallahassee news: <\/p>\n<p>Country Club Golf Course Sale<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | text-start article-text\">Tallahassee\u2019s NAACP also opposes the sale of a city-owned country club golf course due to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wctv.tv\/2025\/10\/15\/graves-enslaved-people-remain-unmarked-capital-city-country-club-sparking-push-preservation\/\" target=\"_self\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.wctv.tv\/2025\/10\/15\/graves-enslaved-people-remain-unmarked-capital-city-country-club-sparking-push-preservation\/\">existing unmarked graves of formerly enslaved people<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The country club land was previously leased for $1 a year, according to the city of Tallahassee. The civil rights organization said this lease happened in an effort to avoid desegregation, \u201cand maintain its status as a whites-only private entity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The group said the price that the country club seeks to purchase the city-owned land is below the country club\u2019s value. They also cite the Capital City Country Club\u2019s \u201clack of transparency\u201d in their effort to improve the golf course. <\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cCCCC [Capital City Country Club] has claimed that it cannot secure loans to improve the golf course, yet has provided no documentation of any loan applications or efforts to partner with the City to explore improvement funding.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"figure-img img-fluid mx-auto d-block\" alt=\"Years after discovery, graves of enslaved people remain unmarked at Capital City Country Club\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761157275_874_C4ULGFVGSREGNEKRJPLRUHZRQ4.png\" width=\"980\" height=\"706\" \/>Years after discovery, graves of enslaved people remain unmarked at Capital City Country Club(City of Tallahassee)<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">According to Tallahassee\u2019s NAACP, the Capital City Country Club has not committed to preserving the unmarked graves of formerly enslaved people. <\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cThese sacred burial grounds remain unmarked, unprotected, and unacknowledged, with no visible commitment from CCCC to preserve or memorialize them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The group cited section 7 of the proposed agreement, which they wrote indicates that neither the city nor the country club is going to preserve or protect the graves. The group also wrote that the country club lacks accountability, as it did not attend a Sept. 17 city commission meeting to speak and engage with residents on its proposed sale. <\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cThe land should be preserved as a fully public space, open and accessible to all communities, similar to other neighborhoods such as Southwood and Killearn,\u201d the NAACP branch wrote. They also said that Tallahassee must protect and memorialize the burial grounds located in the golf course to ensure the graves are respected and remembered. <\/p>\n<p class=\"text | text-start article-text\">To keep up with the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/WCTV.tv\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Facebook<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/wctvnews\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Instagram<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@WCTVEyewitnessNews\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">YouTube<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/nextdoor.com\/page\/wctv\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/nextdoor.com\/page\/wctv\/\" target=\"_blank\">Nextdoor<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/nextdoor.com\/page\/wctv\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/nextdoor.com\/page\/wctv\/\" target=\"_blank\"> <\/a>and <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WCTV\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">X<\/a> (<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WCTV\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Twitter<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | text-start article-text\">Have a news tip or see an error? <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wctv.tv\/2025\/10\/22\/tallahassee-wake-up-naacp-opposes-fsu-tmh-merger-country-club-golf-course-sale\/mailto:news@wctv.tv?subject=Correction%20Needed\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Write to us here<\/a>. Please include the article\u2019s headline in your message.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | text-start article-text\">Be the first to see all the biggest headlines by downloading the WCTV News app. Click <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wctv.tv\/2024\/12\/18\/download-free-wctv-mobile-streaming-apps-today\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a> to get started.<\/p>\n<p class=\"copyright |\">Copyright 2025 WCTV. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) &#8211; The Tallahassee branch of the NAACP has officially denounced the Tallahassee Memorial Hospital and&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":16009,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[6328,13705,235,1169,13706,3603,13702,13701,13703,232,13707,234,13704,233],"class_list":["post-16008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tallahassee","tag-capital-city-country-club","tag-cccc","tag-city-of-tallahassee","tag-country-club","tag-country-club-sale","tag-fsu","tag-fsu-tmh","tag-fsu-tmh-merger","tag-naacp","tag-tallahassee","tag-tallahassee-country-club","tag-tallahassee-headlines","tag-tallahassee-naacp","tag-tallahassee-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16008","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16008"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16008\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16009"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16008"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16008"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16008"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}