The Jewish Impact on Miami Beach

They were barred from owning property on Miami Beach. They were barred from entering hotels. They were barred from joining country clubs. They were expelled from 109 countries.

Yet, despite these restrictions – or perhaps because of them – they became one of the most powerful, influential, and philanthropic groups on Miami Beach.

They are, of course, the jews.

Even in the face of discrimination, they dominated Miami Beach politics for decades. While no longer the largest ethnic group on the beach, Jewish politicians have held a majority on the city commission since World War II.

In 2001, when Jose Smith was elected to the seven-member city commission, making it a majority Hispanic for the first time, it was still majority Jewish – because Smith was a Cuban Jew.

“He belonged to both groups, so we used to say the commission was really three-and-a-half Jewish and three-and-a-half Cuban,” said Abe Lavender, sociologist and president of the Miami Beach Historical Association.

Today, the city commission remains majority Jewish, even though Miami Beach is majority Hispanic and elected its first Hispanic (and female) mayor in 2007. Mayor Matti Herrera Bower is married to a Jew, if that makes any difference.

Miami Beach is now one of the most liberal municipalities in the county, a legacy of earlier Jewish generations who transformed the city from a conservative, anti-Semitic enclave into a liberal, multicultural hub.

“Because we are a minority group and have a history of liberalism and persecution, we tend to be a lot more accepting of diversity and multiculturalism,” Lavender said.

Political Influence and Activism

David Dermer, who stepped down as mayor in 2007, was the 15th Jewish mayor since 1943. He recalls campaigning as a child with his father, Jay Dermer, mayor in the late 1960s:

“There was a lot more emphasis on street-level campaigns. Dad would sit and talk to porch sitters one-on-one.”

These porch sitters were elderly Jews from New York City, many from the Garment District. They were union organizers and social activists who brought that same energy to Miami Beach.

In 1967, Jay Dermer ran against Elliot Roosevelt, FDR’s son. Many expected Roosevelt to win easily, but the election took place a month after the Six-Day War, when Israel showcased its military strength. Dermer’s Israeli-born wife helped him connect with Jewish voters on this sensitive issue.

“Voting was extremely important to these people because many were immigrants,” Dermer said. He sees parallels today with Cuban Americans in the 1980s and the local gay population’s activism.

“Gentiles Only” Restrictions

Miami Beach, incorporated in 1915, was primarily owned by Carl Fisher, John Collins, and the Lummus brothers. Jews were restricted to living south of Fifth Street.

“Carl Fisher had in his deeds that he would not sell to Jews. All the Jews were forced to live south of Fifth Street,” said Marcia Jo Zerivitz, director of the Jewish Museum of Florida.

Restaurants like Joe’s Stone Crabs, opened south of Fifth Street by Jewish families, remain part of this legacy. Jews were still banned from hotels, which proudly displayed “Gentiles Only” signs, until 1949.

By the 1950s, Jewish residents had made permanent contributions:

• Architect Henry Hohauser designed many South Beach Art Deco hotels.
• Jewish doctors founded Mt. Sinai Hospital.
• Developer Ben Novak built the Fontainebleau Hotel, designed by Jewish architect Morris Lapidus.

Yet, paradoxically, black musicians like Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald were welcomed to perform but not to stay in the hotels. Even by the 1960s, some areas and country clubs maintained restrictions against Jews.

By 1965, 65,000 Jews lived on Miami Beach, up from 7,200 in 1945. Growth slowed in the 1980s due to the Mariel boatlift and rising crime. By 2004, only 2,100 households were Jewish, roughly 20 percent of Miami Beach’s population – still substantial, considering Jews make up only 2 percent of the U.S. population.

Orthodox Jewish Community

Rabbi Abraham Korf, who arrived in Miami Beach from New York in 1960, noted that earlier Jewish residents were not particularly religious. He helped establish kosher practices in hotels, introducing glatt kosher standards.

Today, the Orthodox population is smaller but more observant. Younger generations focus on local civic issues:

“Safety for our children is a big issue for us. Traffic and cost of living are also concerns,” said Sholem Kleiman, 29, recently relocated from Israel.

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on September 10, 2009. Updated in 2026 with new photography; with preserving Carlos Miller's original perspective.