Florida Board Member Dr. Dan Layish, Staci Layish, ZOA
Campus fellow at UCF Jake Suster, and ZOA's Sharona
Whisler and Susan Tuchman
Both events were standing room only. In
her introductory remarks, Ms. Whisler said,
“Unfortunately, anti-Semitism is not a new
topic. But the reality is that it seems to be
tolerated. That’s what we’ll be discussing
tonight, as well as what ZOA is doing about it
and what you can do about it.”
Mr. Pollak talked about current discussions
on Capitol Hill and ZOA’s role in ensuring
that members of Congress are well informed
about issues relating to Israel, anti-Semitism,
and the Middle East. He said that while
other pro-Israel groups may have backed off
from the controversy caused by the words
and actions of Representatives Omar and
Tlaib, ZOA will not let go of the matter
until Representative Omar is dismissed from
the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Otherwise,
anti-Semitism will be normalized in
Congress, something no Jew should tolerate.
Mr. Pollak gave an update on a resolution in
the works, aimed at condemning anti-Semitism
singularly and calling out Congresswoman
Omar’s statements. Mr. Pollak also
answered questions about Iran and the Palestinian
Authority.
Ms. Brauser said, “It was an incredible
opportunity to host Dan Pollak in our community
and hear his insights from Capitol
Hill about the advocacy work ZOA does for
Israel. The exchanges during and after his
presentation were very lively and informative.
Our guests were updated on the unparalleled
work ZOA does. It was a great evening!”
Largest-Ever Florida
Representation at ZOA
Capitol Hill Advocacy
Mission
With an additional evening of programming,
this year’s ZOA Capitol Hill
Advocacy Mission saw the largest group
from Florida yet, with attendees of all ages –
from Palm Beach County, Broward County,
Miami-Dade, and Orlando. The Florida
group was well prepared for the six scheduled
meetings with our Senators, Rick Scott and
Marco Rubio, and Representatives Debbie
Wasserman Schultz, Ted Deutch, Lois Frankel
and Stephanie Murphy.
We advocated for resolutions condemning
anti-Semitism, enshrining the State Department’s
definition of anti-Semitism into law,
and requiring the U.S. Department of Education
to enforce Title VI of the Civil Rights
Act to protect Jewish students. We also urged
lawmakers to ensure the U.S.’ permanent
withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive
Plan of Action (JCPOA), and to enhance
sanctions on Iran to stop its ballistic missile
development program and its regional and
global support for terrorism.
All the advocates at the ZOA’s Capitol
Hill Advocacy Mission were honored by the
30-plus lawmakers who came to address the
ZOA’s congressional luncheon. Floridian
advocates were especially honored by the
Florida lawmakers who attended: Senator
Rick Scott and Representatives Michael
Waltz, Mario Diaz-Balart, Brian Mast and
Greg Steube.
During his speech, Rep. Brian Mast – who
suffered catastrophic injuries during his
deployment in Afghanistan, including the
loss of both legs – invited congressional colleagues
and fellow veterans to join him at the
podium: Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX), a U.S.
While other pro-
Israel groups may
have backed off
from the controversy
engendered by the
words and actions
of Representatives
Omar and Tlaib,
ZOA will not let go
of the matter until
Representative
Omar is dismissed
from the House
Foreign Affairs
Committee.
Otherwise, anti-
Semitism will be
normalized in
Congress, something
no Jew should
tolerate.
66 Around the Country: Florida