In response to a widespread rise in antisemitism, second gentleman Doug Emhoff condemned “an epidemic of hate” in the United States on Wednesday.
At a roundtable conversation he gathered on Wednesday of Biden administration officials and Jewish leaders, Emhoff, a Jew, declared: “Let me be clear: Words matter.” The peaceful passages are no longer spoken aloud by anyone. Literally, they are yelling them.
Susan Rice, the senior advisor to the president for public engagement, Keisha Lance Bottoms, and Deborah Lipstadt, the special envoy to combat antisemitism, were present at the meeting with Emhoff. The Anti-Defamation League and Jewish on Campus were two of the 13 Jewish organisations represented by leaders and professionals who took part in the conversation.
Emhoff’s roundtable was already planned a few weeks ago as a way for the second gentleman to speak out against the rise in antisemitic incidents nationwide. However, it now comes at a particularly poignant time as rapper Ye, better known as Kanye West, has recently amplified antisemitic remarks, praising both Adolf Hitler and Nazism. The roundtable’s importance is further increased by former President Donald Trump’s meal last month at his Mar-a-Lago home with Ye and white nationalist Nick Fuentes.
Rice stated during the panel that “there is nothing more venomous than what we are seeing today coming out of the lips of our leaders, of our public leaders, of our celebrities, and our elected leadership.”
Although he has been vociferous in denouncing the current spike in antisemitism, President Joe Biden was not anticipated to attend the discussion. He tweeted last week that “political leaders should be calling out and rejecting antisemitism wherever it lurks.”
President Biden, my wife, Vice President Harris, and I have made considerable efforts to look into and address violence in America since day one of this administration, Emhoff stated on Wednesday. “This is only the beginning of the conversation for me today; this is not the conclusion of the conversation.”
Emhoff, the first Jew in his position, did not grow up particularly religious, but since taking on the role of second gentleman, he has largely embraced his Jewish identity. He has hosted a virtual Seder, lit the menorah at a Jewish school in Washington, D.C., and attended Rosh Hashanah services this past September. In light of what he has previously referred to as a “epidemic of hate,” he has recently expressed interest in identifying strategies to assist fight antisemitism across the nation.
During the roundtable discussion on Wednesday, he declared that he is “proud to be Jewish” and that he “will not remain silent” in regards to the pervasive antisemitism.
Our identity is in it. It’s who I am. At the panel, Emhoff stated, “I’m in pain right now. “Our neighbourhood is suffering. I’m hurt by what I see happening to us right now. … This cannot be normalised. We all have a responsibility to denounce the violence.
For too long, people “failed to take antisemitism seriously,” but now it’s being treated seriously at the highest levels of government, according to Lipstadt, the special envoy to combat antisemitism, who stated on Wednesday that antisemitic attitudes “must be stopped by all means necessary.”
“The threat against Jews is quite serious, and that alone would make it worthwhile for us to combat this brutality with all of our heart and mind, but there are other reasons to do so. Antisemites don’t just detest Jews; their hatred of all people is just the tip of the iceberg, according to Lipstadt.