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Protesters rally against Muslim conference in Florida
Demonstrators questioned use of public venue for Florida Muslim Conference, citing organizers’ past affiliations and speakers.
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Staff Reporter - Mon, 09, Feb 2026
- 00:50 EST
- 9
The rally focused on objections to the conference’s location at a taxpayer-funded facility. / Courtesy Photo
Jewish and Hindu demonstrators gathered outside the Coral Springs Center for the Arts on Jan. 31 to protest the Florida Muslim Conference, held at the government-owned venue.
The rally focused on objections to the conference’s location at a taxpayer-funded facility and on concerns raised by protesters about the event’s organizers and past programming. The conference was organized by the South Florida Muslim Federation.
Days before the event, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said the conference could face closure because of what he described as radical affiliations and the use of a public venue. The South Florida Muslim Federation has previously been affiliated with the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis recently designated a terrorist organization under state action.
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After the attorney general’s warning, the federation said it had disassociated from the council. At the time of the conference, the federation’s website continued to display the council’s logo on its member page.
Protest organizers said past conferences featured speakers who praised Hamas and vendors selling merchandise bearing images of U.S.-designated terrorist figures. Organizers of the conference did not publicly address those claims.
The protest was sponsored by the Joe Kaufman Security Initiative and the Kashmir Hindu Foundation and drew about 30 to 40 participants. Speakers included Joe Kaufman; Kashmir Hindu Foundation Director Deepak Ganju; radio host Roger Homefield; Broward County Jewish Republican Club President Dan Seidel; Davie-Cooper City Republican Club President Jeff Rubinoff; and Hindu advocate Fareida Rajkumar.
Kaufman said during the rally, “This organization shouldn’t be in a public facility—shouldn’t be in a private facility. This organization shouldn’t be anywhere in the United States of America.”
Rajkumar spoke about the need for education and awareness, citing historical violence against Hindus in her country of origin. Ganju warned against what he described as the spread of radical Islamist ideologies in the United States and urged cooperation between Jewish and Hindu communities.
Participants waved American and Israeli flags and held signs reading “NO JIHAD IN OUR BACKYARD!” and “CAIR IS A TERROR GROUP.”
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