04
Mar
Four Takeaways from Israel’s Tri-peat Election
Israelis went to the polls yet again on March 2, for the third time in less than a year. Here are four takeaways from this week’s election.
04
Mar
Beth Bendheim (VA): ‘I’m More Scared Now’
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Moment
“I think people feel that they’re allowed to say things now that they wouldn’t have said before because of the president’s rhetoric. He’s just so mean and they think they can act the same way. They probably already had hate in their hearts and now they feel more emboldened to act on it.”
04
Mar
Mark Goldhaber (NC): ‘Ignorance and Fear Drive the More Traditional Hatred’
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“As the son of a Holocaust survivor, I’m really concerned about the many incidents in New York and overseas as well, such as with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in England.”
04
Mar
Nancy Santanello (PA): ‘It’s Not Anti-Semitic to Question Israel Policy’
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“We have someone in the White House who believes right-wing conspiracies and tweets anti-Semitic tropes. A conservative website, TruNews, whose founder called Trump’s impeachment a ‘Jew coup’ orchestrated by a ‘Jewish Cabal,’ was credentialed by the Trump administration to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos. They were treated like a legitimate news site, but this is hate speech and should be condemned and not legitimized by the president.”
04
Mar
Lavea Brachman (OH): ‘White Nationalists See Trump as One of Them’
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“Trump has absolutely been a source for provoking all kinds of intolerance. Everything he does is rooted in promoting divisiveness. Trump’s white nationalist allies see him as one of them, which validates and legitimizes their ugly anti-Semitic, racist views. BDS and much of the left rhetoric is really more about Israel than it is about Jews. But it gets interpreted by many as anti-Semitism. I do not like “the squad.” I don’t like their views. But none of them is president of the United States.”
04
Mar
Sandra Lawson (NC): ‘I Often Face More Anti-Semitism from the Jewish Community’
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“Anti-Semitism is not a right or a left issue, and neither is racism. Most of the violence against Jews is coming from people who have heard rhetoric on the right. But that doesn’t mean that there’s no anti-Semitism on the left.”
04
Mar
Shelley Berkley (NV): ‘BDS Is as Anti-Semitic as the Marchers in Charlottesville’
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“I would like a commitment to use the office of the president to ensure Congress passes legislation not only condemning anti-Semitism but protecting houses of worship and other religious organizations from anti-Semitic acts and appropriating resources to strengthen the security protecting Jewish institutions and buildings.”
04
Mar
Sander Eizen (MI): ‘The Most Recent [Anit-Semitic] Attack Shook me the Most’
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“We’ve all been at our rabbi’s house for some event. The thought of somebody coming in with a machete and just hacking away is truly terrifying. And I think that’s why that attack, as well as the Jersey City attack, felt different than the Pittsburgh Tree of Life shooting. In some sick way, an attack on a religious institution is almost more expected than an attack on somebody’s home or at a supermarket.”
04
Mar
Michael Ginsberg (VA): ‘I Think This Is Just the Beginning of Very Bad Stuff’
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“I would say the president has done a pretty good job of addressing anti-Semitism. I think he’s been a strong supporter of the State of Israel. I think, substantively, he’s been very friendly and very good to the Jews. On the other hand, when I look at the Democratic Party, I see a party that is not only unwilling to disavow anti-Semites but openly embraces them. You have Congresswomen who are talking about being hypnotized by the State of Israel and being unwilling to walk that back. You have a caucus that’s unwilling to take them to task for blatantly anti-Semitic comments.”
04
Mar
Stephanie Wudarski (PA): ‘I Always Felt Removed From Any Sort of Anti-Semitism’
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“Anti-Semitism is one area where the far-right and far-left kind of meet. Both sides are responsible in that sense. The far-left tends to be aggressors online but who knows where that could be originating from—it could be foreign influence. The far-right tends to be more likely to carry out violent, anti-Semitic attacks.”
04
Mar
Lou Weiss (PA): ‘Overall, America Loves Jews’
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“Some people say they love Jews, but they don’t like Israel. But if a person is anti-Israel in the sense of being against the Jewish state and they support BDS they are anti-Semitic 100 percent. BDS is absolutely like what the Nazis did in Germany in terms of discriminating against Jewish businesses.”
04
Mar
Sandra Mallin (NV): ‘The Biased Media Also Plays a Part’
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“I think President Trump’s record speaks for itself. It is obvious that he has supported Israel and Jewish causes for the past three years unequivocally; he doesn’t flinch. “