Fort Lauderdale Venue Cancels Progressive Rally Over Antisemitism Claims

The Venue Fort Lauderdale canceled a scheduled political rally titled Chomp the Oligarchy after State Representative Michael Gottlieb, chairman of the Florida Legislative Jewish Caucus, described the event as anti-Jew. The rally was designed to support progressive Democratic candidates Elijah Manley, Oliver Larkin, and State Representative Angie Nixon in their primary challenges against Jewish Democrats. U.S. Representative Rashida Tlaib, a known critic of the Israeli government, was scheduled to headline the event.

Management at The Venue cited security concerns and a commitment to the Jewish community as the primary reasons for the cancellation. The venue stated it would only host the gathering if Tlaib were disinvited. Following this decision and cancellations from two other venues, lead organizer Cameron Driggers relocated the rally to a Fort Lauderdale wine bar for Friday night.

Driggers condemned the cancellations as part of an Islamophobic intimidation campaign. He argued that critics were intentionally twisting criticism of the Israeli government into antisemitism to silence progressive political speech.