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A Jewish institution in Nashville, Tennessee, has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against a neo-Nazi organization it says deliberately targeted the city’s Jewish population with harassment, intimidation, and unlawful intrusion..
The Gordon Jewish Community Center (JCC) filed the lawsuit this week against the Goyim Defense League (GDL), its founder Jon Minadeo II, and several associates. The suit alleges a coordinated campaign meant to terrorize Jews, disrupt communal life, and provoke fear.
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) filed the complaint on the JCC’s behalf in federal court.
Infiltration of a Secured Jewish Facility
The lawsuit centers on a January 2025 incident involving Travis Garland, a Tennessee resident affiliated with GDL. According to the complaint, Garland entered the JCC’s secured campus while impersonating an Orthodox Jewish man.
Once inside, Garland allegedly livestreamed the encounter. He mocked Jewish religious practices and ridiculed the Holocaust. Staff repeatedly ordered him to leave. He refused and security removed him from the property.
Garland later pleaded guilty in state court to criminal trespassing. Nashville television station WTVF reported he received a jail sentence of nearly one year.
The lawsuit says Garland did not act alone. It alleges that GDL figures directed and encouraged him during the intrusion. Extremist streamer Paul Miller, known online as “GypsyCrusader,” allegedly participated in real time. Others reportedly watched the livestream through video chat and later promoted the incident online as a staged provocation.
Alleged Pattern of Organized Harassment
The complaint argues that the January trespass formed part of a broader pattern. It links the incident to a 10-day GDL presence in Nashville during the summer of 2024, when members allegedly targeted Jewish and Black residents.
During that period, the group allegedly carried out assaults, harassment, and public intimidation. Members reportedly waved swastika flags downtown and confronted Black children in public spaces. The filing also describes assaults on a Jewish man and a biracial man.
The SPLC has already pursued separate legal action related to that earlier campaign.
“Using fear and harassment to threaten and intimidate groups is a despicable act that cannot be tolerated in a multicultural society,” said Scott McCoy, the SPLC’s deputy legal director. He noted that the organization has brought multiple lawsuits over GDL activity in Nashville targeting Jewish and Black communities.
Impact on the Jewish Community
The Gordon JCC, which has served Nashville for more than 120 years, says the campaign forced costly and disruptive changes. According to the lawsuit, the center spent roughly $75,000 on additional security.
Staff and members also changed how they use the campus due to safety concerns. The filing argues that fear now shapes daily decisions.
The lawsuit states that these outcomes were intentional. It describes the actions as a deliberate effort to interfere with civil rights and deny Jews equal access to a public-facing institution.
Legal Strategy and Civil Rights Claims
The lawsuit invokes the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, a federal statute designed to combat organized intimidation campaigns. It also cites other civil rights laws that address conspiracies to deprive protected groups of their rights.
The plaintiffs seek court protection, financial compensation, and punitive damages.
“This lawsuit demonstrates the Nashville Jewish community’s resolve to stand firm in the face of antisemitic intimidation and to hold accountable those who perpetrate it,” said Ben Raybin, an attorney representing the Gordon JCC.
Pressure Mounts on Goyim Defense League
The legal action comes amid mounting scrutiny of the Goyim Defense League. Following an investigation by WTVF, a domain registrar removed websites operated by Minadeo. X also suspended several associated accounts.
Local reporting has documented additional criminal cases tied to the group’s 2024 Nashville visit. Authorities have already convicted or indicted some members for violent conduct.
GDL once ranked among the most prolific distributors of antisemitic propaganda in the United States. Its members spread flyers in Jewish neighborhoods nationwide. While its online reach appears to have narrowed, Nashville has remained a recurring target.
For the Gordon JCC, the lawsuit marks both a defense and a declaration.
The filing makes one point unmistakably clear: antisemitic intimidation will not go unanswered, and those who orchestrate it will face accountability in court.
Take Action
CAM has launched Report It — a secure app to report antisemitic incidents anonymously and in real time. Don’t stay silent — download it today on the Apple Store or Google Play. See it. Report it. Stop it. Together, we can fight this hate.
