During her remarks, Congresswoman Stefanik praised ZOA as a leading pro-Israel advocacy organization and highlighted her collaboration with ZOA’s legal team in advancing civil  rights  protections (under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act) for Jewish students facing antisemitism on their college campuses.

(May 8, 2026 / Jewish Press) Recently, ZOA Florida proudly hosted two successful women’s events featuring U.S. Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY), who spoke about her newly released book, Poisoned Ivies: The Inside Account of The Academic and Moral Rot at America’s Elite Universities.

The book draws on Stefanik’s incisive questioning of Ivy League university presidents at a congressional hearing, which revealed their indifference to Jew-hatred and more generally the failures of American higher education.

The events drew large audiences and included meet-and-greet opportunities for the enthusiastic attendees. The first event, on April 17, was a sold-out gathering in Palm Beach, graciously hosted by ZOA Florida Advisory Board Member Corine Ruimy. The momentum continued on April 19 with an event attended by over 200 participants at Anshei Emuna Congregation in Delray Beach.

During her remarks, Congresswoman Stefanik praised ZOA as a leading pro-Israel advocacy organization and highlighted her collaboration with ZOA’s legal team in advancing civil  rights  protections (under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act) for Jewish students facing antisemitism on their college campuses.

Allison Zur, ZOA Florida director, described ZOA’s pioneering, successful  six-year battle to ensure that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act would be reinterpreted to also protect Jewish students from antisemitic harassment and discrimination at universities, high schools, and elementary schools. Despite relentless criticism and outright opposition, including from prominent Jewish organizational leaders, ZOA remained steadfast in its mission to ensure that Jewish students would be afforded the same legal protection from harassment and discrimination that other ethnic and racial groups had possessed since Title VI’s enactment in 1964.

“Today, all of the lawsuits brought by students addressing antisemitism on college campuses are only possible because of ZOA’s groundbreaking legal work,” Zur noted. ZOA was honored to serve as Congresswoman Stefanik’s first stop on her Florida book tour.

This article was originally printed by the Jewish Press and can be viewed as a PDF here.