An armed good Samaritan reportedly intervened in a potential hate crime, chasing off an SUV that was harassing a Jewish family on the side of the road.
“So thankful that a total stranger stepped up to protect us,” said Eric Orgen, whose family had just left a Miami Beach-area synagogue when they were approached by people in an SUV and harassed with antisemitic slurs while the passengers reportedly threw trash and water bottles at the family.
The armed driver of a white Audi behind the SUV who allegedly witnessed the harassment got out of his car and “pulled his gun to protect us and chased them as they drove away,” Orgen recalled.
Orgen, who was visiting with his wife and 16-year-old daughter, said four men in the SUV yelled “f*** you, Jew,” “die, Jew,” and “free Palestine” while throwing debris at the family.
‘DIE, JEW’: JEWISH FAMILY VISITING SOUTH FLORIDA HARASSED, PELTED WITH TRASH WHILE WALKING
“They just started screaming some derogatory things towards Jewish people out the window,” Orgen said. “My first thought was just making sure my wife and daughter were behind me so I could take the brunt of anything that was going to happen.”
“They also said, ‘We’re going to rape your daughter. We’re going to rape your wife.’ Who yells that?” he added. “They then threw garbage at us out the window, as well as a water bottle.”
Orgen said he believes the incident amounted to a hate crime.
“It’s a scary world we live in, but the world is big enough for everyone to live peacefully. We all bleed red,” Orgen said.
Antisemitic hate crimes have been on the rise across the country as tensions flared in Gaza in recent weeks, with reports of vandalism of synagogues and attacks on Jewish people from Los Angeles to New York City.
Orgen also reported the Miami Beach-area incident to police.
“Bal Harbour Police Department is actively investigating the incident, and I am confident that they will track down the perpetrators,” Bal Harbour Mayor Gabriel Groisman said. “We have ZERO TOLERANCE for criminal conduct in our municipality, and we will do everything in our power to keep all residents and visitors in Bal Harbour safe.”
Antisemitic hate crimes have also been increasing in South Florida, most recently when a van decorated with phrases such as “Hitler was right” interrupted a pro-Israel demonstration in the area.
“Acts of hate and violence against any community are not tolerated in Miami-Dade County,” Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said in a statement. “Hate and intolerance contradict the foundations of our community — a place where so many generations of people found a safe home after fleeing their own countries to build a new life with their families.”
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“As a member of the Jewish community and the first Jewish Mayor of Miami-Dade, acts of antisemitism in our County cut especially close to home,” she continued. “They also deepen my commitment to ensure Miami-Dade remains a place where all people are welcomed, respected, and made to feel at home, regardless of where they come from or their faith.”
