An Alachua County School Board member says Florida’s governor, education commissioner and other officials have put an antisemite “on a pedestal” in an attack on the board.  

“They’ve used Mr. [Jeremy] Clepper as their poster child,” school board member Tina Certain said in an interview with Mainstreet. “Dr. [Sarah] Rockwell is Jewish. He said some vile things about her.” 

Clepper, a 36-year-old plumbing company owner, rose to public prominence after being at the center of a contentious school board meeting on July 31, when citizens lined up to comment on Chairperson Sarah Rockwell’s Facebook post deriding Hulk Hogan, the late pro-wrestler.  

“Oh did Hulk die? I didn’t even know. Good. One less MAGA in the world,” Rockwell wrote in the since-deleted post. 

Rockwell, who declined to comment for this story, apologized during the school board meeting. 

“I made a highly inappropriate comment on my Facebook page, one that I deeply regret,” she said. “There is absolutely no excuse for what I said.” 

Clepper twice spoke up at the board meeting before the public discussion period began and was told he would have to wait his turn. When his turn came, Clepper called Rockwell a “disgusting, vile human being” and called for her resignation.   

“Rockwell, you cheered for the death of MAGA,” Clepper said from the speaker’s podium.  “You should step down.” 

Clepper also disparaged others in his remarks, saying a Newberry activist who was convicted of child sex crimes should be “strung up” and “castrated.”  

After his allotted time to speak, Clepper continued to call out to others in the audience. 

Certain, filling in at the gavel for Rockwell, asked deputies to remove Clepper but quickly rescinded the request at the advice of the school board attorney. Clepper then left the meeting of his own accord. 

He later posted on social media that he left because he felt intimidated by the board and the audience, some of whom were jeering him, shouting, “He’s a racist,” and “Get him out.” 

Clepper said his right to free speech had been violated in the altercation, which made national news. 

Florida Commissioner of Education Anastasios Kamoutsas took notice, writing a letter that did not name Clepper but addressed the incident with Rockwell. 

“After a parent expressed his protected opinion under the First Amendment, you sat idly by while the police were directed to escort this parent out of the school board meeting for expressing a conservative viewpoint,” Kamoutsas wrote in the letter, which he posted on X. “Because the board did not stop the First Amendment violation from occurring, all members should be held accountable for creating an environmental where citizens’ constitutional rights are under attack.” 

“Accountability,” Gov. Ron DeSantis wrote on X as he reposted the Kamoutsas letter.  

Clepper also reposted the letter, writing, “Amazing people are supporting me and getting this out there!” 

“We have your back, brother,” Kamoutsas replied. 

The Florida State Board of Education, at its next meeting on Aug. 20, found unanimously that the School Board of Alachua County had violated parental speech rights. The panel ordered the local school members to undergo First Amendment training and warned of automatic sanctions – the loss of members’ salaries – to kick in should future violations occur.  

Newberry Mayor Tim Marden, who is also the chair of the Alachua County Republican Party, addressed the state board and said it should inflict a more severe punishment, saying the local school board had created a “toxic” environment for conservative points of view. 

At the meeting, Marden declined Mainstreet’s request for comment on his support for Clepper.  

Certain told Mainstreet that Clepper’s claim that his speech was stifled is unfounded and that the support he’s received is misguided. 

“We were accused of violating Mr. Clepper’s First Amendment rights. If you look at the video of the meeting, you will clearly see he was allowed to speak,” Certain said. “They have put him on a pedestal – in a position – that his behavior and history suggests is undeserved.” 

According to public records, including police reports and court documents reviewed by Mainstreet, Clepper has been jailed for two offenses, including leaving the scene of an accident and reckless driving involving alcohol.  

Clepper was adjudicated guilty of misdemeanors in five separate incidents, including for battery and several alcohol-related incidents in four counties. According to one arrest report, Clepper boasted that it “took ‘10 guys’ to hold him down at the bar.” 

In an interview, Clepper said he doesn’t “handle authority” well but blamed “leftist, liberal police officers” and judges for his arrests and convictions. 

“They like power,” he said. “I’m just offensive. You shouldn’t get arrested just for being offensive.” 

Kamoutsas took a similar position, telling Mainstreet that Clepper’s background is irrelevant to whether he was treated unfairly in the school board meeting. 

“In this scenario, he’s a victim,” Kamoutsas said. “We’re not going to not seek justice for someone simply because they have a court record.” 

Kamoutsas ended the interview before Mainstreet could question him on Clepper’s social media posts that circulated online before Clepper removed them from public view. Those posts include antisemitic tropes, claiming “the world is controlled by Jews and Muslims,” and criticizing DeSantis for flying to Israel to sign hate crimes legislation. 

In January, Clepper reposted a post from Rockwell in which she asked Christians not to celebrate Hanukkah. 

“Hey you peasant goyims [non-Jews], mind your space!!” Clepper wrote sarcastically.   

The Alachua County Democratic Executive Committee issued a statement condemning the education commissioner and the Republican Party “for continuing to defend an antisemite while attempting to silence and punish a Jewish elected official.” 

Amy Trask, chairperson of legislative affairs for the Alachua County Democratic Executive Committee, said Kamoutsas had a “moral duty to make himself aware, to not lend the power of his office to support someone who professes bigoted beliefs.” 

Meanwhile, Clepper continues to call for the resignation of Rockwell, who he said should be held to a higher standard.  

“I’m just a plumber,” Clepper said. “She is over thousands of kids.”