Florida man hung banners with swastikas, anti-Semitic slogans in Orlando bridge, authorities say

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — A Florida man was arrested Tuesday for his participation in a neo-Nazi demonstration over the summer, where members of extremist groups hung banners with swastikas and hate messages over an overpass.

Jason James Brown, 48, of Cape Canaveral, Florida, is accused of hanging swastikas and other antisemitic banners along the Daryl Carter Parkway Bridge in Orlando on June 10, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. He was charged with criminal mischief, a misdemeanor.

Agents with Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Orange County Sheriff's Office found a video labeled "Disney Shock & Awe," where Brown and the other demonstrators were seen dressed in military camouflage, carrying the banners, according to the arrest warrant.

Three additional warrants for other demonstrators from out of state were issued in connection with the demonstration that was seen by thousands of motorists. The demonstration also took place on the same day where other far-right demonstrators gathered outside Walt Disney World Resort, waving swastika flags and banners along with other hateful rhetoric and signs promoting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign.

“Florida is a law-and-order state. Today’s arrest demonstrates Florida’s commitment to protecting residents from attention-seeking extremists,” Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Executive Director Dave Kerner said in a statement Tuesday.

Kerner credited DeSantis, who has been criticized for his slow response to public antisemitic displays, for signing a new law into effect that prohibits the display of intimidating and malicious images on buildings or other structures without permission. The governor's office said the bill provides "law enforcement agencies with new enforcement mechanisms to punish perpetrators of antisemitic incidents and those who target religious communities."

The arrest follows recent extremists' actions and hate crimes in the state, including a mass shooting in Jacksonville where a white man killed three Black people in a racially motivated attack in August.

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Increase in hateful demonstration, messaging

Organizations like the Anti-Defamation League, which monitors extremists groups, say such demonstrations are growing in number as neo-Nazis and others seek to expand their ideological reach.

According to the ADL's 2022 report, examining extremism and antisemitism in Florida, there has been a significant increase in extremist related incidents in the state and nationwide since 2020.

Across the nation, the organization also found that there were 3,697 antisemitic incidents in 2022 — making it a 36% increase from the 2,717 incidents recorded in 2021. The states with the highest number of incidents were New York, California, New Jersey, Florida and Texas, where all five accounted for 54% of the total incidents.

Incidents in Florida, such as hanging swatiska-emblazoned banners over roadways and shouting ethnic slurs at motorists in and around Orlando — in some cases, near the entrances to Disney World — have drawn national attention. And several communities in the state have also found antisemitic materials tossed along yards.

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Neo-Nazi demonstrator has a history of extremism

Brown has a history of being involved with neo-Nazi sympathizers, court records show. Last year, Brown was one of two self-described neo-Nazi group members booked into the Brevard County Jail Complex. The pair was arrested in connection with an antisemitic demonstration that turned violent in Orange County.

Both Joshua Terrell, 46, and Brown, were charged in connection with a Jan. 29, 2022, demonstration, where a Jewish motorist was targeted.

Orange County sheriff’s investigators said Brown and two others were part of a group of 20 demonstrators, with some wearing Nazi insignias and yelling antisemitic slurs at passing cars. Brown was also seen on video shouting antisemitic slurs on a megaphone, reports show.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said Tuesday that Brown is a member of the extremist group "Order of the Black Sun." The group is a small neo-Nazi network primarily based in Florida and was formed in early 2023 "by long time affiliates of Florida's overlapping white supremacist network," according to the ADL.

If convicted in the latest case, Brown could face up to a year in jail.