Florida venue cancels Rashida Tlaib rally after state lawmaker protests ‘anti-Jew’ event

A South Florida site backed out of hosting a rally with Democratic US Representative Rashida Tlaib, a staunch opponent of Israel, after complaints by a Democratic state lawmaker in the party’s latest flashpoint over its stance on Israel.

Tlaib, the daughter of Palestinian immigrants, was scheduled to appear Friday at a rally for three candidates in Florida’s upcoming Democratic Party primary.

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However, The Venue Fort Lauderdale, which was scheduled to host the event, suddenly canceled it after State Representative Michael Gottlieb, chairman of the Florida Legislative Jewish Caucus, posted a statement claiming the planned rally was an “anti-Jew” gathering and noted “the irony” that “many Jews host Bar/Bat mitzvah celebrations at the Venue, I’ve attended several myself.”

The Venue in a statement cited “increased security concerns” for its decision and said it was Jewish-owned and “our values and commitment to the Jewish community are deeply important to us.”

“We want to be unequivocally clear that the acceptance of a venue booking should never be interpreted as an endorsement,” it added.

The “chomp the oligarchy” rally was organized by groups such as “Florida Youth Justice Coalition,” “Gen-Z For Change” and a local chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, the national platform of which calls to end all military aid to Israel and claims Palestinians have a “right to resist.”

The rally was meant to support State Representative Angie Nixon, who is running for the US Senate, and Elijah Manley and Oliver Larkin, who are seeking seats in the US House of Representatives. Manley and Larkin are respectively running against US Representatives Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Jared Moskowitz, two of the most prominent pro-Israel Jewish Democrats in the House, while Nixon is facing off against Alexander Vindman, the Jewish former army officer who was ousted from the National Security Council after testifying against US President Donald Trump during his first impeachment trial.

“This is a coalition of candidates and organizations who are on the strongly pro-Palestinian/anti-Israel left, several of whom have been involved in disputes over where anti-Zionism crosses into antisemitism. Tlaib has by far the deepest record of antisemitic allegations,” Gottlieb wrote on social media.

After The Venue withdrew its support, the event was expected to proceed at a Fort Lauderdale wine bar, an organizer told The New York Times, which reported that the establishment had first asked Gottlieb to take down his Facebook post. He refused.

One of the organizers of the rally meanwhile told the newspaper that The Venue said the event could go ahead if Tlaib dropped out, a condition they rejected.

The Florida Democratic Progressive Caucus claimed the cancellation was rooted in anti-Muslim sentiment. Florida’s primary elections are scheduled for August 18.

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