The Eighth Annual Commemoration of the Largest Mass Arrest of Rabbis in US History

On Friday, June 18th, 2021, the Saint Augustine Jewish Historical Society hosted a commemoration of the largest mass arrest of rabbis in American History. The event occurred on June 18th, 1964 when 16 rabbis and a Jewish administrator joined the foot soldiers who were actively protesting segregation at local business in Saint Augustine during the Civil Rights Movement. They came at the request of Dr. Martin Luther King, who wrote them a letter asking them to come down to Saint Augustine after he was jailed for trying to integrate the Monson Motor Lodge. The rabbis were also at the Monson Motor Lodge when they were arrested. The rabbis together wrote a letter “Why We Went,” from jail, discussing their commitment to civil rights and their call for helping the movement.

The commemoration occurred at the current site of the Monson Motor Lodge, now the Hilton Bayfront Hotel. Executive Director Regina Gayle Phillips read the letter that Dr. King wrote to the rabbis, along with a reading by Lee Weaver of the rabbis’ letter. Click here to watch the program, recorded and edited by University of Florida’s Samuel Proctor Oral History Program.