4 April 2-8, 2026 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | THE GRADUATE Actually, James Fishback wasn’t his high school’s 2023 commencement speaker. BY NAOMI FEINSTEIN I n a departure from his usual rage-bait and white national- ist content on social media, far-right gubernatorial candi- date James Fishback recently shared a clip of himself giving what was supposed to be an inspi- rational speech for graduates of the Broward County high school he once attended. “In 2023, I was honored to deliver the com- mencement address at my alma mater, Boyd H. Anderson High School,” Fishback posted. In the four-minute clip, he congratulated the graduating seniors on earning the “most comprehensive degree our country has to of- fer,” celebrated their futures, implored them to become leaders, and shared clichés like “live, learn, laugh, love.” Although he says he doesn’t remember who invited him to be the commencement speaker, Fishback tells New Times that it should not be shocking, given that he is “probably the most famous Bro- ward County Schools alum in the last 20 years, even prior to my governor’s run.” However, there is one big problem. He wasn’t speaking to the class of 2023, nor was he the commencement speaker. The clip that he shared was, in fact, from the 2022 Boyd H. Anderson High School graduation ceremony, and the commence- ment speaker was a chief administrative offi- cer of a West Palm Beach healthcare company. Fishback was introduced as a “for- mer student” and spoke for less than five minutes, whereas the commencement speaker spoke for nearly 20 minutes. The clip he shared on X was his full speech. The timing matters because the Broward School District has said it cut ties with Fish- back and a student debate organization he runs in 2022 over sexual misconduct allega- tions involving a minor. The candidate has denied those claims. Born in Davie to a Colombian mother, Fishback, throughout his campaign, has used white nationalist and racist rhetoric against his opponent, Rep. Byron Donalds, including calling him a “slave to donors. Fishback grad- uated in 2013 from Boyd Anderson, whose student population is 87 percent Black. In 2019, Fishback created Incubate De- bate, a debate league for middle and high school students. He worked with several school districts in Florida, including Broward County, to coach debate students and host de- bate tournaments. As first reported by NBC News last year, the Broward School District allegedly “cut ties” with Fishback and his de- bate program in 2022 after receiving emails from the mother of a student in the organiza- tion, alleging that he was having an inappro- priate relationship with a minor student in the debate program. Keinah Fort, who unsuccessfully asked the court for an order of protection in January against Fishback, said he “initiated a romantic relationship” with her in spring 2022 when she was 17, and he was 27 and “explicitly di- rected” her to keep the relationship a secret. She said in court records that they moved in together in the spring of 2023, after she turned 18, and that they were engaged for a short pe- riod thereafter. According to the court records, Fishback threw objects across the room and screamed at her “on multiple occasions.” After this story was published, Broward schools spokesman John Sullivan told New Times that when the district received the email detailing the allegations, it was already concerned with “Fishback’s failure to follow district safeguards and protocols, including contacting students directly.” “As a result of our experience, the District revoked his ability to volunteer or to be left alone with our students,” his statement con- tinued. In a phone call with New Times, Fishback said the school district never “cut ties” with him because students still attend his tourna- ments, and there was no official contract or partnership to end. He vehemently denied the sexual misconduct allegations from the former student and argues that it was an at- tempt to extort him for hundreds of thou- sands of dollars. He added that it is “objectively untrue” that he was banned from Broward schools, claim- ing that the school district has praised his de- bate program on social media and that he was named the volunteer of the year in 2022. (The school district provided New Times with a list of volunteers of the year for 2022. Fishback was not on it.) He pointed out that he was at a Broward School Board meeting in 2024 to rec- ognize the Incubate Debate national cham- pion and a Broward school student. “As of two weeks ago, I had hosted a dozen Broward students for a tournament,” Fish- back said in reference to Incubate Debate. He contends that the mother had sent an anonymous email to Broward Schools be- cause her daughter was kicked out of the de- bate program. “Who sends an anonymous email?” Fish- back asks. “Why didn’t she go to the police?” (New Times was not able to independently confirm whether police were contacted.) Fishback says the allegations are an at- tempt to extort him and hurt his campaign now that he says he is “surging in the polls.” A February poll of likely Republican primary voters from the University of North Florida Public Opinion Research Lab found Donalds leads the race at 28 percent, followed by Casey DeSantis with 24 percent, and Fish- back in third with just 4 percent of the vote. Since launching his long-shot, far-right governor’s cam- paign, the 31-year- old has emerged as the “Groyper candidate,” as he has gained popu- larity amongGen- Z men and followers of white nationalist and anti-Semite Nick Fuentes. He rou- tinely launches racist attacks on his opponent and GOP favorite Donalds, whom he refers to as “By’rone,” and a slave. Last month, Fishback posted a video of himself shooting an assault rifle, demanding Donalds to “pull up” to prove he is “actually Black.” Fishback, the CEO and founder of the in- vestment firm Azoria Capital, is also dealing with growing financial issues. Aside from getting his 2022 Tesla Model Y repossessed (and supposedly his couch?), his lawyer in a lawsuit filed by his former employer, Green- light Capital, just quit over $150,000 in un- paid legal fees. [email protected] James Fishback was not the commencement speaker at high school’s graduation in 2022 or 2023, despite what he has claimed. Broward Schools livestream screenshot | METRO | FISHBACK WAS INTRODUCED AS A “FORMER STUDENT” AND SPOKE FOR LESS THAN FIVE MINUTES, WHEREAS THE COMMENCEMENT SPEAKER SPOKE FOR NEARLY 20 MINUTES. chose “WildlifePro after evaluating multiple vendors.” It noted that the association has the legal authority to protect the property and its residents. “We also want to clearly state that our staff should not be subjected to mistreatment or be made the target of this situation,” the email stated. “Additionally, any claims suggesting that Association staff were directed to handle or harm wildlife are inaccurate. All work related to this matter is performed exclusively by licensed third-party professionals.” In response to the video, an FWC spokesper- son told New Times that they are “checking with law enforcement for more information.” After this story was published, Pest Wildlife Pro owner Rolando Calzadilla said in a state- ment that the pigeons were humanely killed us- ing the cervical dislocation method, which is considered humane by the American Veterinary Medical Association.”Taking an animal’s life is something we don’t take lightly,” he said. “Aside from ensuring it’s done as humanely as possible, we also need to be as discreet as possible. Yes, to avoid uncomfortable situations like these, but more than that, to ensure it’s not seen by an in- nocent. An innocent can be a child or other pigeons.”He said the employee uses the bag to ensure the other pigeons do not witness what is happening, along with the bucket, to be dis- creet when going down the elevator and back to their vehicle.”Our takeaway from this situa- tion is that we need to be more mindful of our surroundings and be more discreet when hu- manely killing the pigeons,” he continued. No Pigeons from p3
