Biden Speaks Out Against 'Despicable' Rise in Anti-Semitic Attacks

Attacks have surged since start of Gaza conflict
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted May 24, 2021 1:01 PM CDT
Biden Condemns 'Despicable' Rise in Anti-Jewish Attacks
Patrick Crow, center with flag, and his brother Andrew, right, of Pittsburgh, attend a peace vigil in support of Israel at the Jewish Federation of Pittsburgh, in Pittsburgh, Friday, May 21, 2021.   (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

President Biden spoke out Monday against a disturbing rise in anti-Semitic attacks in the US linked to the Gaza conflict. "The recent attacks on the Jewish community are despicable, and they must stop," the president tweeted. "I condemn this hateful behavior at home and abroad—it’s up to all of us to give hate no safe harbor." Vice President Kamala Harris also spoke out against the recent attacks, which included vandalism of synagogues across the country and an attack on Jewish diners outside a Los Angeles restaurant, the Hill reports. The Anti-Defamation League says there has been at least 26 attacks since May 10. The ADL and other Jewish groups wrote to the White House Friday, urging Biden to speak out against the rise in violence.

"We are tracking acts of harassment, vandalism and violence as well as a torrent of online abuse," Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt in a statement, per USA Today. The group said that while most people who attended protests condemning Israel's actions stayed "within the lines of free and civil discourse," there have also been some clear expressions of anti-Semitism. Sen. Bernie Sanders—who has criticized both Hamas and the Israeli government—drew parallels between the rise in anti-Semitic attacks and the rise in attacks on Asian Americans and other minorities, the Washington Post reports. "We’ve got a serious problem of a nation which is being increasingly divided, being led by right-wing extremists in that direction," he said. (More antisemitism stories.)

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