Sara Solano

ENC 3331
Professor Stewart
March 3, 2016

Annotated Bibliography
1. Pit Bull Ordinance. (Sec. 5-17). Miami-Dade County Ordinances.
Miamidade.gov. (1989). Web. 20
Feb, 2016.
The Pit Bull Law was published in 1989 after a child was bitten by a dog
with Pit Bull/Terrier like characteristics. The policy states that it is illegal to own or
keep American Pit Bull Terriers, or any breed with similar characteristics. They also
mention that the ordinance is in place to ensure the safety, health, and welfare of
the citizens in the County, and that here will be a $500 fine for those keeping the
dog, as well as the removal of the animal from the County.
For my campaign, I will be working to change this Breed Specific
Legislation. It is important for me to be aware of all aspects of this policy so that I
can take it apart when making my points of contention. The policy is buying into the
stereotypes of the Pit Bull Breed by mentioning the nature of the dog to attack
humans and other animals when all dog breeds are capable of attacking at any
time. The policy fails to take into account important factors how the dog was raised,
and how it was being treated during the moments of misconduct. It also doesnt
take into consideration that some of these dogs are service dogs, which causes a lot
of problems for the residents of the County.

2. Dog owners liability for damages to persons bitten. (767.04). The 2015 Florida
Statutes. (2015). Web.
20 Feb, 2016.
This Florida Statute states that if a dog bites a person while they are in
public, or if theyre lawfully in a private place, the owner is liable for damages
suffered by persons bitten, regardless of the previous viciousness of the dog, unless
the person bitten had caused the bite. This policy was recently changed after
campaigns emerged when a dog was sentenced to euthanasia for biting a childs
ear when it was being cornered and getting items thrown at it. People were furious
that the policy didnt exclude such situations, and realized that it also didnt include
other exceptions like a dog biting a home intruder.
I would like to use this policy in my favor to show policy makers that
there is an evolution in the way that society perceives dogs. This policy change
proves that we understand that there are special circumstances for all dogs, and
that not two cases are alike. The new Florida Statute change helps demonstrate into
what the Miami-Dade County policy could become, a more factual, and inclusive
policy. I would also like to continue investigating the steps taken to change this
policy, in order to use it as a guideline of what works.

3. Steube, Gregory W. Florida State Representative.

greg.steube@myfloridahouse.gov. Phone
(941) 341-3117. Web. 20 Feb, 2016.
Greg Steube is a Florida State Representative serving in House District
73, Sarasota and Manatee County, he is currently running State Senate. Last year
Steube, proposed the bill change for the mentioned 767.04 of the Florida Statute

Legislation. He called it Padis Law, after the dog who was being threatened with
euthanasia. On January 27th 2016, the bill passed unanimously to change the policy.
It could be helpful to have Greg as a resource because he could help me
understand the paths I can take to changing my policy. Greg can also point me
towards other State Representatives who could possibly be in the Miami-Dade
County with similar beliefs on animal rights. Besides that, Greg Steube is currently
running as State Senate, and it can be important for him to speak on issues that
affect counties that he isnt currently in like Miami-Dade, to get a wider reach of
votes.

4. Miami Coalition Against Breed Specific Legislation. Non-Profit Organization.

http://www.uni
tedagainstbsl.org. Phone (305) 323-3960. (2007). 20 Feb, 2016.
The Miami Coalition Against Breed Specific Legislation (MCABSL) is a
non-profit organization based in Miami started in 2007.MCABSL is fighting to get rid
of any Breed Specific Legislation, currently focusing on the Pit Bull Ban in Miami.
They are connected to a multitude of celebrities, and are have over 30 business
supporters throughout the County including The Miami New Times, and the Miami
Herald.
The MCABSL is the main organization that would be a great resource for
my campaign. They have been around since 2007, and are constantly campaigning
and creating events to educate people on the issues of the Pit Bull Ban. I think that
there would be a shared value of working with one another. As someone who is
educated in Mass communications in Social Media, and has experience in Digital
Strategy, I could provide many insights on how to improve their online presence to

reach their goals, as well as volunteering at events, and bringing their movement to
Orange County.

5. Rodriguez, Laura. "Couple Forced To Move Pit Bull Service Dog to Broward." NBC 6
South
Florida. N.p., 13 Nov. 2013. Web. 20 Feb. 2016.
This article brought to light one of the many issues with the Miami-Dade
Pit Bull Ban of prohibiting these animals as service dogs. Felix Conde a Miami-Dade
resident was the owner of Lucky, a service dog who recognized when Felix was
beginning to become out of breath. Lucky is a trained and certified service dog who
happens to be a Pit Bull mix. Felix and his wife fought to keep their dog, and
ultimately were forced to move into Broward County to lose the risk of having Lucky
taken away.
This article is a great reference to how inaccurate and close-minded this
policy is. The fact that they see all Pit Bulls as dangerous and uncontrollable is
proven to be wrong by the dogs being able to be trained as service dogs. It also
shows how its not only causing harm to the breed but to the people who need them
by their side. I can use this article to show proof that there should not be a
generalization of the Pit Bull breed, but how the law is affecting the citizens of the
County.

6. Johnson, Drew. "Pit Bull Bans Kill Family Pets, Too." Washington Times. The
Washington Times, 6 July
2015. Web. 20 Feb. 2016.

This article relays some of the facts about how unnecessary BSL are in
the United states. Johnson mentions how rare deaths or injuries from a Pit Bull are
and even compares it to being a lower risk than dying from a falling coconut than a
Pit Bull attack. He also mentions that these laws are forcing people to choose to
move out from their homes, or killing their family pets. Johnson also mentions that
Pit Bulls have become the most common dogs in the pound and there is an estimate
of 1 million dogs categorized as Pit Bulls being euthanized every year.
This article is a great reference because it shows how these Pit Bull bans
are affecting America as a whole, and brings the issue beyond just Miami-Dade
County. It also conveniently explains a large amount of the reasons I also believe in
the removal of this ban. This article also comes from the Washington Post which
many people read and find as credible which is important if Im going to use it as a
resource.

7. Hall, Peter A. "Policy Paradigms, Social Learning, and the State: The Case of
Economic Policymaking in
Britain." Comparative Politics 25.3 (1993): 275. UNC. 01 June 2011. Web.
20 Feb. 2016.

This scholarly journal by Peter A. Hall although speaking about policies in

Britain was very insightful in explaining when the government needs to realize that
its time to change a policy. Hall begins explaining the concept of social learning
and defines it as the intentional attempt to adjust the goals or techniques of a
policy by including past experience as well as new information. He also takes the

time to explain three main variables of policymaking, and the goals that it should
reach.
This source from Peter Hall has helped me put into words why I believe
the Pit Bull ban should be changed. Like I mentioned, Hall talks about social learning
in terms of policy making and how the government should not only consider past
experiences but also new information. The ban of this breed has been present and
unrevised since 1989, meaning that they have lacked in their efforts to include new
information into the policy. Hall also took the time to explain that there a different
instruments to use for different kinds of policy changes, for example for a financial
policy for the elderly, he recommends you using bringing an old age pension and
breaking it down to show why the financial policy is needed.

8. Potter, Jonathan. Representing reality: Discourse, rhetoric and social construction.

Sage, 1996.
Jonathan Potter breaks down his book into themes, beginning with a
section called Definitions and Etymology, where he talks about the true definitions
of the word fact and of description. He continues with the next theme titled
Specificity versus Universalism, where he explains the tensions between
specificity and generalization. Lastly, he describes the theme of Transcription, in
the sense of transcribed talk.
This book is an essential resource to the way that I dissect the rhetoric of
the Miami-Dade policy, as well as how I present my own rhetoric. I find the first two
themes particularly useful for my campaign because he talks about the importance
of differentiating facts from mere descriptions of believed truths, this can be used
while I present my argument against the ban. Being that I have an emotional

attachment to my cause, I need to be able to understand how to distinguish facts

about how harmful the Pit Bull ban is from my emotional beliefs. The second theme
is about how to see specific rhetoric to a more generalized one. I already believe
that the Pit Bull Ordinance is based on generalized beliefs about the breed and the
policy uses those generalizations in its rhetoric.