Rabbi Discusses Safety In Light Of Nazi Group Demonstrations

SURFSIDE (CBSMiami) — Florida has seen disturbing trends in hate.

Research from the Southern Poverty Law Center shows Florida has the second highest number of hate groups in the country with 68, second only to California.

"We take safety very seriously, but we also live with no fear," says Rabbi Sholom Lipskar of the Shul of Bal Harbour in Surfside.

This past weekend, self-proclaimed Nazis in Orlando gathered on I-4 and at a busy shopping center, waving swastika flags and shouting obscene language about Jews. They chanted: "Heil Hitler! White power!"

"It hurts me a lot to know there's people out there like that, but it scares me not at all. We've been through the worst hate the world has ever seen half a century ago in the Holocaust," Rabbi Lipskar says. "We adjust to hate under the worst circumstances, but it doesn't mean we tolerate it."

Gov. Ron DeSantis addressed the demonstrations Monday, saying Democrats were trying to use it against him. 

"These people, these Democrats who were trying to use this as some type of political issue to try to smear me, as if I had something to do with it, we're not playing their game," he said.

"Florida is maybe, probably other than Israel, the number one destination for Orthodox Jews to move to, if you look over the last two years, because we do it right. Because we have provided tremendous support," he continued.

Last week, antisemitic flyers were going around Miami Beach, Fort Lauderdale, and other parts of South Florida, blaming Jews for the pandemic.

At the Shul, Rabbi Lipskar says they've always been vigilant when it comes to security.  They employ armed guards with military backgrounds. Three years ago they established a command center with a network of about 100 cameras. 

"Every single person who walks through this place, we know who they are, every person who walks through these doors," Rabbi Lipskar says.

He says they stay positive, but also realistic about the state of the world.

Meanwhile, Daytona Beach Police say a neo-Nazi group called in a bomb threat to Bethune-Cookman University and other HBCUs.

The school tweeting out:

"We want to let you know that our students are safe.  Both the Volusia County Sheriff's Office and the Daytona Police Department responded immediately and are on campus. We are unable to provide any details at this time so that law enforcement is able to complete their tasks without distraction." 

Rabbi Lipskar believes social media plays a role in emboldening these individuals by connecting them with people of similar mindsets, particularly during the pandemic when so many turned to the internet for interaction.