JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Florida lawmaker called for Gov. Ron DeSantis last week to push officials to enforce laws that stop protests at the state’s universities that he said support “Jewish genocide.”
The call from Rep. Randy Fine of Palm Bay, the only Jewish Republican member of the Florida legislature, came after a number of protests across Florida college campuses where people either condemned or supported the actions of Israel amid its ongoing war with Hamas.
While there have been peaceful marches to support Palestinians at some campuses, chaos erupted in Boca Raton last week when three people were arrested at Florida Atlantic University after a march to support Palestinians was met with counter-protests.
A 19-year-old FAU student whose birthplace is Jordan, was arrested on a felony battery charge after she elbowed a pro-Israeli woman, police said.
Following the protest, Fine said he wants all chartered student organizations that encourage or support violence to be expelled and to have their funding revoked.
Students for a Democratic Society in Jacksonville is based at UNF and has held two rallies in support of Palestinians in the past two weeks.
The group’s communications director said Fine’s proposal is trying to silence them.
And one expert said what Fine wants may go against the First Amendment of the Constitution, which says that Americans can not be punished by the government for their opinions.
“It could not be more clear, more basic or more essential to our democracy,” Ken Paulson, director of the Free Speech Center at Middle Tennessee State University, told the Tallahassee Democrat.
Several college groups have called to “free Palestine” and tried to bring attention to the conditions in Gaza that came before Hamas attacked Israel. Some have called on the United States to stop providing aid to Israel and questioned the accuracy of media reports on the Hamas attacks.
Others have pointed out that they are speaking out in support of the Palestinian people which is separate from Hamas and not interchangeable.
In a letter to DeSantis, Fine said “any student participating in the rallies of these organizations must be treated like a student screaming the n-word and calling for Black students to be lynched. They would be expelled.”
Fine said “there have been celebrations of Jewish death across Florida” and mentioned Fort Lauderdale, Tampa and Jacksonville along with campuses in Gainesville and Miami.
“These children must not spend one day more surrounded by these animals,” Fine said.
“I am done passing bills. It is time to start using them,” Fine said, citing HB 741 which was signed in 2019 and said justifying the killing or harming of Jews would be treated in an identical manner to how racism on campuses is handled.
Jaye Dodge disagrees with Representative Fine’s proposal.
Dodge is the Communications Director of UNF’s chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), a student-run activist group that openly stands with Palestinians.
“The acts he is proposing are nothing but a violation of our First Amendment rights as students,” Dodge said.
Dodge said SDS Jacksonville does not support antisemitism and instead is protesting the U.S.’s involvement in Israel.
“Our demand is simply, practically, and locally, that we as the United States withdraw that military aide,” he said.
UNF held a vigil in support of Israel last week. News4JAX reached out to the event’s organizers, but they declined to comment. The Jewish Community Alliance also declined.
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office agreed with Fine.
“We agree with Representative Fine: these laws must be enforced by universities. That is why, under the leadership of Governor DeSantis, FDLE, FHP, the Attorney General, DOE, and the Board of Governors sent the attached memos reminding universities, colleges, and law enforcement throughout the state that they have a responsibility to protect the Jewish community from threats and unlawful harassment,” the governor’s office said in a statement to News4JAX.
DeSantis also said the United States should not take in any Palestinian refugees if they flee the Gaza Strip because they “are all antisemitic” and he dismissed international entreaties for Israel to provide clean running water and utilities to the 2.3 million civilians in the territory.
Several dozen pro-Palestinian protestors gathered at the Duval County Courthouse earlier this month to support what they call a Palestinian revolution against Israel.
“I think the framing of it ignores Hamas is not the only people that exist in Gaza. So, what we saw in Gaza wasn’t just Hamas. It was Palestinians who were suffering under a blockade and occupation,” Sara Mahmoud said when asked about her opinion on Hamas being called a terrorist group.
Protestors who attended the rally said the U.S. government should end its financial and military support of Israel. On Wednesday, President Joe Biden announced an additional $100 million in humanitarian aid for Gaza and the West Bank as he reiterated the U.S. was firmly behind Israel.
For decades, Palestinians and Israelis have fought each other over land, and the fights have been deadly.
The latest Israel-Hamas war has already claimed more than 3,600 lives.