A Florida JCC canceled a Jewish author’s talk because her novel mentions slavery
Author Rachel Beanland and the cover of her novel, The House Is On Fire. A Florida JCC canceled her author talk, citing political concerns because the book, set in 1811, mentions slavery. Courtesy of Rachel Beanland
By Beth Harpaz September 5, 2023
A Florida JCC canceled a Jewish author’s talk because her book mentions slavery.
The JCC later issued a public apology and re-invited the author, Rachel Beanland, but she declined to accept.
Beanland, author of The House Is On Fire, was initially invited to speak at the Mandel JCC in Boynton Beach and Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, as part of the Jewish Book Council’s author tour. The tour sends Jewish authors to synagogues and JCCs around the country.
But then the JCC asked for details about her presentation, saying in an email: “This is Florida and our politics around the Black community, the history of the Civil War, and education in general are complicated.”
The House Is on Fire is based on the true story of an 1811 fire at a theater that killed 72 people in Richmond, Virginia, so Beanland responded that her presentation would likely “address slavery.” The author lives in Richmond with her husband and children and is a writer in residence at the University of Richmond.
On Aug. 30, the JCC canceled her talk, stating that “the decision is very much affected by the current political climate here in Florida.”
Beanland posted the emails from the JCC on Instagram on Aug. 31.
The apology
On Monday, the JCC did an about-face, posting an apology on Instagram that said the institution was “deeply sorry for what our JCC communicated with Rachel, as it does not reflect the values we stand for.”
Beanland said the Instagram post came about after the JCC’s CEO, Jesse Rosen, called her over the weekend to discuss the incident and she asked him to make a public apology.
Rosen said in an email to the Forward that the JCC had “reached out to reinvite” Beanland.
But Beanland characterized an initial “invitation” from Rosen as “‘maybe later in the year you could come back to help educate us.’ I told him that’s not really my job.” She said she received a second straightforward invitation to speak about the book Tuesday.
“Frankly I have no interest in speaking to this JCC,” she said. “They could send me an invitation engraved on a gold placard and I would probably not attend.”
The new state law
A new state law in Florida, “Stop WOKE (Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees) Act,” limits discussions on race in schools and requires teachers to tell students that enslaved people benefited from slavery.
Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis “has all these policies we’re seeing in K-12 schools, removing slavery from textbooks, removing books by Black authors from libraries,” Beanland said. “But to see a private organization that shouldn’t have any reason to be following these policies essentially implement them is deeply troubling. JCCs can do whatever they want. There’s a separation of church and state.”
Comments on Instagram also chided the JCC. “It is an embarrassment to see that the Jewish community has taken a page from the DeSantis playbook by silencing voices and canceling history,” commented one user in response to the JCC’s posted apology.
Another comment said the JCC should buy its members copies of her book, and added: “Instead of fighting over books on history, we should be fighting Nazi rallies since DeSantis isn’t.” The comment referred to gatherings this past weekend in Florida by neo-Nazi groups.
Asked whether the JCC receives state funding that could limit its ability to discuss topics sanctioned by the state, Rosen said in his email to the Forward that the organization does not receive funds for arts and culture directly but does receive some funding for tourism. He added: “We do welcome all voices at the JCC and take pride in serving as an inclusive and welcoming space for all.”
Beanland’s schedule of talks around the country was locked in with the Jewish Book Council by early summer, “and it’s highly unusual for an organization to cancel on you,” she said. “It’s also highly unusual to be asked what the subject matter of your presentation is. I knew as soon as I received that request what was going on.”
Beanland said that overall, the novel had “been warmly received” in the Jewish community and elsewhere. Her calendar includes two JCC-sponsored events in Florida, one Nov. 7 in Boca Raton and another in Key Biscayne on Nov. 8.
In a statement, the Jewish Book Council commended the JCC for “publicly disavowing its previous action.”
Rosen said in an email that the book committee staff member who was responsible for the communications with Beanland “left our employment before we became aware of these communications,” adding that he was “limited” in what he could say about employment matters.
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