ORLANDO, Fla. – A U.S. congressman for the Orlando area is asking the Justice Department to investigate an antisemitic group and its recent activity in Orange County.
Rep. Darren Soto, D-Kissimmee, wrote to Attorney General Merrick Garland Thursday, asking him to investigate “potential civil rights and criminal violations.”
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Soto called the group a “network of antisemitic provocateurs that participate in propaganda distribution and street actions.” He specifically mentioned the recent distribution of antisemitic flyers in a Lake Nona neighborhood which is part of Soto’s district, as well as a purported protest last month outside a Jewish center in south Orange County.
“These incidents are part of a surge of antisemitism nationwide, and we must use all resources available to stop the spread of hate,” Soto said.
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News 6 is not naming the hate group, which Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood recently blasted for “despicable, cowardly and reprehensible” attacks throughout that county.
That includes using a portable projector to display antisemitic messages on the side of Daytona International Speedway, what is believed to be the same group displaying antisemitic signs on a pedestrian overpass, people handing out antisemitic propaganda in Ormond Beach and reports of hateful speech in the city of Port Orange.
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