Drag queen Miss Bouvèé has raised more than $25,000 (£18,700) by selling bricks from a Miami Beach rainbow crosswalk to support Pride celebrations in South Florida.

The South Florida-based performer’s fundraiser comes just over a year after the Miami Beach rainbow crosswalk was demolished in October 2025 by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT).

Under Governor Ron DeSantis, the FDOT ordered local authorities to remove pavement art associated with “social, political, or ideological messages”. Miami Beach appealed the order but lost.

Why are rainbow crosswalks being demolished in the Florida?

The stated that the removal was due to road safety and standardisation. “Non-standard surface markings, signage, and signals that do not directly contribute to traffic safety or control can lead to distractions or misunderstandings, jeopardizing both driver and pedestrian safety,” it read.

According to the Associated Press, Miami Beach Commissioner Alex Fernandez said city public works employees collected all of the removed bricks to potentially be used in the future.

Some of the original bricks were reused, while others were auctioned. Miss Bouvèé won the auction and chose to turn the bricks into a Pride fundraiser.

Miss Bouvèé restores Miami Beach rainbow crosswalk bricks

She cleaned, repainted and recoloured the bricks, adding a plaque commemorating their original location.

Speaking to the about the impact of the removal, Miss Bouvèé said: “I think what was scariest about this was that we saw cities lose their rights to govern their own people.”

“They took away due process; they took away the cities’ rights to manage their own streets. That starts somewhere, and it ends somewhere else.”

Bouvèé raises funds for Pride events in South Florida

She sold 50 bricks in four days. “People got so excited about holding a piece of our history, because it’s not the first time we’ve used bricks for a protest. I just love that they’ll have this life all over the nation,” she told the outlet.

The money will help fund Pride events, including a live entertainment stage and security. Beyond that, Miss Bouvèé hopes her gesture will encourage others in the community to stand up for what’s right.

“I hope it inspires other drag queens to be innovative, to think about how you can be just as creative as you are with your art form, look what you can do to save your Prides,” she said.

Rainbow crosswalks demolished in Florida

The Miami Beach crosswalk was not the only rainbow crossing removed in Florida. In August 2025, FDOT painted over the rainbow crosswalk outside the Pulse nightclub in Orlando.

The memorial honoured the 49 people murdered in the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting, including . The removal sparked backlash from the local community, with residents protesting and attempting to restore the crosswalk using rainbow-coloured chalk.

In September 2025, the state also removed four rainbow crosswalks in Key West and four in Delray Beach.