News / Florida
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Commemoration of mass arrest of rabbis
The Tenth Annual Commemoration of the largest mass arrest of rabbis in U.S. history will take place outdoors at the Hilton St. Augustine Historic Bayfront, 32 Avenida Menendez, St. Augustine, at noon, Sunday, June 18. This 30-minute event sponsored...
Florida rejects Holocaust education textbooks in clampdown on 'woke' instruction
(JTA) — Florida’s state education department rejected two new Holocaust-focused textbooks for classroom use, while forcing at least one other textbook to alter a passage about the Hebrew Bible in order to meet state approval. The books were rej...
Advocacy groups fight rise in antisemitism in Florida with billboard campaign
Nonpartisan watchdog nonprofit StopAntisemitism has teamed up with the Christian advocacy organization Philos Project to fight rampant Jew-hatred with a billboard campaign across Florida. Troubled by the amount of antisemitism coming from...
Gov. DeSantis signs law cracking down on hate speech
While Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was in Israel, he signed a bill to strengthen Florida's ability to combat antisemitism. The bill HB 269, titled "Public Nuisances," was co-sponsored by Republican...
Florida the only US state where El Al will service two cities
(JNS) — In a reflection of growing ties, Florida will soon be the only U.S. state where El Al will service two major cities, Gov Ron DeSantis said Thursday. Israel’s national carrier, which recently relocated its U.S. headquarters from New...
DeSantis: 'There's never been a Palestinian Arab entity'
(JNS) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis emphasized that there has never been a Palestinian state in the Land of Israel or elsewhere. The Republican politician was in Israel, where he keynoted the Celebrate the Faces of Israel event, a project of the J...
Jewish chair of Florida's Democratic Party arrested at abortion rights protest
(JTA) — Nikki Fried, who chairs Florida’s Democratic Party, was arrested at a protest for abortion rights in the state capital, along with 10 other demonstrators. The protest on April 3, which took place outside Tallahassee City Hall, was in oppo...
DeSantis signs school-choice bill with nearly $8,000 in state funding per child
(JNS) - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill on Monday to establish a statewide voucher program in which every child will be eligible to receive nearly $8,000 toward schooling, tutoring or other ed...
A Florida bill attacking 'critical theory' in higher education has the state's Jewish academics worried
(JTA) — The University of Florida has more Jewish students than any other public college in the United States — and last week, one of them reached out to a professor, fearing that it would no longer be possible to study Jewish topics there....
Florida bill banning 'ethnic intimidation' flyers aims to stop neo-Nazi rise
(JTA) – Responding to a recent rise in neo-Nazi activity in his state, a Jewish lawmaker in Florida is trying to outlaw displays of “religious or ethnic animus” on private property in his state. H.B. 269 takes aim at a variety of activities tha...
Holocaust novel by Jodi Picoult removed as Florida school district purges libraries to comply with state law
(JTA) – A Holocaust-themed novel by bestselling author Jodi Picoult was among dozens of books removed from a South Florida school district library’s circulation last month, in the latest example of books with Jewish themes getting swept up amid a...
El Al to increase number of flights from Florida to Israel
(JNS) — As Southeast Florida’s Jewish population continues to grow, El Al Airlines announced that it will increase flights to and from the region, including new operations at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Broward County, the...
Florida school board cancels Paula Vogel's 'Indecent'
(JTA) — In 1923 in New York, a Yiddish play that featured the first lesbian scene on a Broadway stage was censored for being indecent. In 2023 in Florida, a play about the first play has been canceled for the same reason. For many involved in the...
Jewish Historical Society to mark 10th anniversary at Jan. 30 Luncheon
The St. Augustine Jewish Historical Society will mark its tenth anniversary with a luncheon, at noon, Jan. 30, at Taco Libre#3, 2600 North Ponce de Leon Boulevard/Route U.S. 1, St. Augustine 32084. The program will include a brief review of the...
Response concerning recent antisemitism in Florida
The Holocaust Center now and forever condemns all forms of antisemitism. We will continue to speak out against hate speech — such as this past weekend’s public display of antisemitic hate in Jacksonville — because it has no place in Florida...
Trump receives American Defender of Zion Award at Mar-a-Lago
PALM BEACH, FL – JEXIT, Inc. has become the world’s first Jewish organization to present a U.S. president with the American Defender of Zion Award. President Donald John Trump accepted the award in Mar-a-Lago’s White and Gold Ballroom before...
Jewish Historical Society to Gather on Veterans Day
The 104th anniversary of the Armistice ending World War I will be observed by the St. Augustine Jewish Historical Society on Veterans Day, Friday, Nov. 11, 2022. at 11 a.m. at the St. Augustine National Cemetery, 104 Marine Street, St. Augustine,...
Helping Jews after Hurricane Ian's devastation
It's unbelievable to see what happened to my city, my friends, my community. Hurricane Ian decimated Fort Myers Beach, along with homes, businesses, roads and vehicles, and left much of the area...
Suspended prosecutor is latest Florida Jew to star in state's abortion fight
(JTA) - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ratcheted up the fight over the state's new 15-week abortion ban Thursday when he suspended a Tampa-area state attorney who had vowed not to prosecute violations....
Group carrying swastika flags in Tampa, Fla., disperses antisemitic fliers
(JNS) — Antisemitic fliers claiming that Jews control the media were found outside homes in Minnesota, Georgia, New York and Florida in recent days, and are being attributed to the same group that marched with swastika flags in Tampa, Fla., on... Full story
Anti-antisemitism: Online, offline and what to do about it
Dr. Gunther Jikeli, director of the Institute for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism at Indiana University will address the question of “Anti-Antisemitism: Online, Offline and What To Do About It” in the Virginia Room on the second floor of...
DeSantis calls out 'woke ideology'
(New York Jewish Week) - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke about the success of the Jewish community in the Sunshine State and the need to fight "wokeness" in an address to a conservative Jewish group i...
Florida synagogue challenges new state abortion limits
SARASOTA, Fla. (JTA) — A synagogue in Florida filed a lawsuit this week to challenge the state over a new law prohibiting abortion after 15 weeks. Under current law, Florida allows abortions up to 24 weeks. Congregation L’Dor Va-Dor of Boynton...
Blaze destroys Torah scrolls
(JNS) - A fire ripped through Chabad-Lubavitch of the Panhandle, in Tallahassee, Fla., gutting the newly renovated building and consuming the Torah scrolls. The Tallahassee Fire Department confirmed...
Found in the conservative scrutiny of Florida's math books: a joke about Jews
(JTA) - In a purge following accusations that textbook publishers were trying to "indoctrinate" students in allegedly liberal concepts, Florida rejected dozens of math books from being used in the...