An Open Letter to America About Anti-Semitism

The massacre at the Tree of Life Congregation in Pittsburgh on October 27th stands as an assault on the lives and inherent human dignity of every American. It is a direct assault on American values to target people because of who they are and what they believe.

This mass shooting is a tragedy, but it was not indiscriminate. It is the direct result of rhetoric that demonizes Jews and celebrates political violence.

The shooter’s profile on the Gab social network is rife with anti-Semitic images and messages posted as recently as the morning of the shooting. Two days before the shooting he posted, “There is no #MAGA as long as there is a kike infestation.” The shooter reportedly entered the synagogue and shouted, “All Jews must die.

Antisemitism today is not always as overt as the Tree of Life Congregation shooter’s social media posts, but it is rampant, and it has been embraced by President Donald Trump and others with influential positions in our country.

The shooting came after a week of attempted bombings of the homes and offices of American leaders and news organizations across the country. The first person targeted in this spree was philanthropist George Soros, a Holocaust survivor who has become the focus of countless conspiracy theories that frame him as a shadowy enemy plotting to subvert what white nationalists view as “Western civilization.”

Just one day before the shooting, President Trump attacked “globalists” in a speech ostensibly meant to call for unity following the bomb attempts. Audience members yelled out “George Soros!” followed by chants of “lock him up!” President Trump reinforced the message, echoing the phrase ‘lock him up’ from the podium.

Earlier in the week, the National Republican Congressional Committee released an ad claiming a Minnesota House candidate was “owned” by shadowy forces including George Soros. The ad was launched on Wednesday, just two days after a bomb was delivered to Soros’ home.

Earlier this month amidst the Senate confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh for Supreme Court Associate Justice, Rudy Giuliani retweeted the message, “Follow the money. I think Soros is the anti-Christ! He must go! Freeze his assets & I bet the protests stop.”

These phrases and catch words used to vilify George Soros are in many cases pulled from the age old tropes used to demonize Jews for centuries and are anti-Semitic through and through. They can’t be overlooked nor hidden by claims of legitimate political disagreements.

We know that it is not only the Jewish community that is at risk from unchecked antisemitism, but also other communities that white nationalists target. The Pittsburgh shooter’s social media posts indicate he was motivated by hateful anti-refugee rhetoric often promoted by fear-mongering elected officials. And, Wednesday’s murder of two African Americans in Kentucky is another example of white nationalists’ continued assault on diverse communities. The shooter attempted to enter a predominantly African American church before committing the fatal shootings, and this act of violence is being investigated as a hate crime. We mourn for these victims as well.

Make no mistake. Too many politicians are lending a loudspeaker to antisemitism, and it is dangerous. This shooting wasn’t the beginning stage of anti-Semitic hate; it was its logical evolution. This weekend it motivated a man to gun down worshippers for no other reason than that they were Jews. We can’t bring them back, but we can speak out against the antisemitism that led to their deaths.

We can pledge to raise our voices against any politician who campaigns on antisemitism. We can commit to vote against antisemitism on November 6th.

Any candidate’s notion of a path to victory on November 6th that rests on white nationalist anti-Semitic hate must become a strategy they will come to long regret. It’s on us to ensure that they do.

FULL LIST OF OPEN LETTER SIGNERS

*Organizations listed for affiliation purposes only

• Mikaela Seligman, Executive Director, Achieve Mission
• Stewart Kwoh, President & Executive Director, Advancing Justice – LA
• Aarti Kohli, Executive Director, Advancing Justice-Asian Law Caucus
• Richard L. Trumka, President, AFL-CIO
• Ted Kirsch, President, AFT Pennsylvania
• Sarai Jael & Portillo Suarez, Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice
• Oscar Chacon, Executive Director, Alianza Americas
• Rev. Dr. Samuel J. López, Co-Pastor, Amazing Love Sanctuary
• Rev. Dr. Jessica Drees-Buchanan, Co- Pastor, Amazing Love Sanctuary
• Frank Sharry, Executive Director, America’s Voice
• J. David Cox, National President, American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO
• Lee Saunders, President, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)
• Randi Weingarten, President, American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
• Kathy Ko Chin, President & CEO, Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum
• Helen Hsu, President, Asian American Psychological Association
• John Yang, President and Executive Director, Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC
• Andy Kang, Executive Director, Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Chicago
• Alvina Yeh, Executive Director, Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO
• Jeff Caballero, Executive Director, Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations
• Halimah DeOliveira, Founder, Be You In HD, LLC
• Opal Tometi, Executive Director, Black Alliance for Just Immigration
• Alicia Garza, Principal, Black Futures Lab
• Janet McClenahan, Boise Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
• Sue Philley, Social Action Team Member, Boise Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
• Emmie Schlobohm, Director of Family Ministries, Boise Unitarian Universalist Fellowship
• Samantha Gladu, Executive Director, Bus Project
• Asma Rehman, National Chapter Manager, CAIR
• Edward Ahmed Mitchell, Executive Director, CAIR Georgia
• Jim Sues, Executive Director, CAIR New Jersey
• Jacob Bender, Executive Director, CAIR Philadelphia
• Zohra Lasania, Program Director, CAIR Pittsburgh
• Zahra Billoo, Executive Director, CAIR San Francisco Bay Area
• Masih Fouladi, Executive Director, CAIR Washington State
• Imraan Siddiqi, Executive Director, CAIR-Arizona
• Maira Sheikh, Executive Director, CAIR-Austin
• Karen Dabdoub, Executive Director, CAIR-Cincinnati
• Faizan Syed, Executive Director, CAIR-Missouri
• Jennifer Nimer, Executive Director, CAIR-Ohio, Columbus Chapter
• Basim Elkarra, Executive Director, CAIR-Sacramento Valley
• Gustavo Torres, Executive Director, CASA-MD
• Andrea Williams, Executive Director, CAUSA Oregon
• Karen Musalo, Director, Center for Gender & Refugee Studies
• Scot Nakagawa, Senior Partner, Change Lab
• Ameer Elnager, Refugee Community Organizer, Church World Service
• Svante Myrick, Mayor, City of Ithaca
• Angelica Salas, Executive Director, Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA)
• Deborah Weinstein, Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs
• Nabeeh Hasan, Director, Colorado Muslim Speakers Bureau
• Chris Shelton, President, Communications Worker of America
• Jay Moseley, Board Chair, Community Alliance of Lane County, Oregon
• Dorian Warren, President, Community Change Action
• Kuhio Lewis, CEO, Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement
• Nihad Awad, National Executive Director, Council on American-Islamic Relations
• Robert McCaw, National Government Affairs Director, Council on American-Islamic Relations
• Hussam Ayloush, Executive Director, Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-LA)
• K. Sabeel Rahman, President, Dēmos
• Natalie Foster, Co-chair, Economic Security Project
• Rachel La Zar, El Centro, NM
• Rev. Alvin Herring, Executive Director, Faith in Action
• Musimbi Kanyoro, CEO & President, Global Fund for Women
• Grupo de Apoyo e Integración Hispanoamericano
• Inhe Choi, Executive Director, HANA Center
• Jose Calderon, President, Hispanic Federation
• Jonathon Heller, Co-Director, Human Impact Partners
• Jay Brown, Acting Senior Vice President, HRC Programs, Research & Trainings, Human Rights Campaign
• Rob Berschinski, Senior Vice President, Human Rights First
• Zahid Bukhari, Executive Director, ICNA Council for Social Justice (ICNA CSJ)
• Eric Cohen, Executive Director, Immigrant Legal Resource Center
• Angel Padilla, Policy Director, Indivisible
• Hassan Jama, Executive Director, Islamic Association of North America
• Maha Elgenaidi, Executive Director, Islamic Networks Group
• David Inoue, Executive Director, Japanese American Citizens League
• Sarita Gupta, Co-Executive Director, Jobs with Justice
• Erica Smiley, Co-Executive Director, Jobs with Justice
• Jonathan Paik, Executive Director, Korean Resource Center
• Jonathan Vorasane, Chair, Laotian American National Alliance
• Juan Cartagena, President & General Counsel, LatinoJustice
• Domingo Garcia, National President, LULAC
• Rev. Cedric Harmon, Executive Director, Many Voices: A Black Church Movement for Gay & Transgender (LGBTQ) Justice
• Eva Millona, Executive Director, Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition
• Rev. Elder Rachelle Brown, Interim Moderator, Metropolitan Community Churches
• Andrew Potter, Executive Director, Michigan Corrections Organization
• Billy Wimsatt, Movement Voter Project
• Anna Galland & Ilya Sheyman, Co-Executive Directors, MoveOn
• Linda Sarsour, Executive Director, MPower Change
• Leon Russell, Chair, NAACP
• Becky Belcore, Co-Director, NAKASEC
• Myron Quon, Executive Director, NAPAFASA
• Ilyse Hogue, President, NARAL Pro-Choice America
• Sungyeon Choimorrow, Executive Director, National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum
• Lauri Ng, Senior Policy Advisor, National CAPACD
• Ai-jen Poo, Executive Director, National Domestic Workers Alliance (NDWA)
• Lily Eskelsen García, President, National Education Association (NEA)
• Saket Soni, Executive Director, National Guestworker Alliance
• Marielena Hincapie, Executive Director, National Immigration Law Center
• Rae Carey, Executive Director, National LGBTQ Task Force Action Fund
• Josh Hoyt, Executive Director, National Partnership for New Americans
• Stephanie Stephens, Campaign Manager, National Partnership for New Americans
• Fatima Goss Graves, President and CEO, National Women’s Law Center
• Seham Abdala, Director, NJ Islamic Networks Group
• Andrea Dehlendorf, Co Executive Director, OUR Walmart
• Caitlin Brune, CEO, Pajaro Valley Community Health Trust
• Suzanne Nossel, Chief Executive Officer, PEN America
• Sundrop Carter, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Immigration and Citizenship Coalition
• Michael Keegan, President & CEO, People For the American Way
• George Goehl, Director, People’s Action
• Nina Esposito-Visgitis, President, Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers
• Tarso Luís Ramos, Executive Director, Political Research Associates
• Aparna Shah & Luis Sanchez, Co-Executive Directors, Power California
• Bob Fulkerson, State Director, Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada
• Petra Falcon, Promise Arizona
• Glenn Harris, President, Race Forward
• Molly Gochman, Founder, Red Sand Project
• Iimay Ho, Executive Director, Resource Generation
• Stuart Applebaum, President, Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU)
• Mary Kay Henry, International President, Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
• Erin Heaney, Co-Director, Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)
• Maricela Gutierrez, Executive Director, SIREN (Services, Immigrant Rights and Education Network)
• Kathy McShane, Director, Sisters of St. Joseph Welcome Center
• Mijo Lee, Executive Director, Social Justice Fund NW
• Sunflower Community Action, Somos un Pueblo Unido
• Mayra Alvarez, President, The Children’s Partnership
• Susan Corke, Fellow, The German Marshall Fund
• Vanita Gupta, President & CEO, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
• Alan Jenkins, President, The Opportunity Agenda
• Erendira Rendon, The Resurrection Project
• Jillian Barousse, SIREN, Director of Civic Engagement, The Street Trust
• Ruth Elder, Founding Member, Thurston Diversity Council
• The Rev. Arthur Stevens, Trinity Episcopal Church
• Shaunna Thomas, Executive Director, UltraViolet
• Adrienne Evans, Executive Director, United Action for Idaho
• Arturo Rodriguez, President, United Farm Workers
• Marc Perrone, International President, United Food and Commercial Workers International Union
• Leo Gerard, President, United Steelworkers
• Fred Redmond, Vice-President, United Steelworkers
• Tom Conway, Vice-President, United Steelworkers
• Stanley Johnson, Secretary Treasure, United Steelworkers
• Adrienne Evans, Executive Director, United Vision for Idaho
• Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director, URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity
• Nancy Nguyen, Executive Director, VietLead
• Christine Neumann-Ortiz, Executive Director, Voces de la Frontera
• Maria Teresa Kumar, Voto Latino
• Rachel Peric, Executive Director, Welcoming America
• Eric K. Ward, Executive Director, Western States Center
• Surina Khan, CEO, Women’s Foundation of California
• Maurice Mitchell, National Director, Working Families Party