Jerusalem — In a powerful opinion piece published by Israel National News, Melissa Glazer, Executive Director of Teach Florida, calls on Jewish residents of Florida to take part in the August 16 primary elections, stressing that the state’s unique support for Jewish education and community safety hinges on active voter engagement.
Glazer recounts the story of a Jewish man stabbed in Manhattan for wearing a kippah — a tragedy that underscores why many Jewish families are relocating from northern cities to Florida. Beyond safety, she writes, families are drawn by the opportunity to provide their children with a Jewish education that is financially accessible.
Florida’s school choice scholarship program, offering roughly $8,000 per child, has made Jewish day schools and yeshivas attainable for middle‑class families. Teach Florida helped lead the advocacy for this initiative, but Glazer warns that a teachers’ union lawsuit now threatens to overturn the program, potentially stripping support from more than a million students statewide.
She also highlights the rise of antisemitism across the political spectrum, urging Jewish voters not to take any party or district for granted. “Safety is never something you inherit,” she writes. “It is something you protect.”
Glazer reminds readers that Florida’s closed primaries are decided by small numbers of voters — meaning every ballot carries weight. She encourages citizens to register, vote, and safeguard the values that make Florida a haven for Jewish life.
Credit: Israel National News / Op‑Ed by Melissa Glazer Subscribe to the JFN Website and to the JFN WhatsApp Channel
