The Women’s March has officially broken ties with former leaders Linda Sarsour, Tamika Mallory, and Bob Bland, citing their past antisemitic comments and actions. One should probably applaud the group for this, but the long history of bigotry from each of the disgraced leaders makes this action long overdue.
As reported by Tablet and other outlets, tension over the antisemitism of these three prominent leaders began almost at the outset of the Women’s March movement. But intersectionality being what it is, diversity won the day and for two years they helped to helm the leftist group. And they did so with the admiration and help of three very prominent members of Congress.
Over the past two years, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Ilhan Omar, and Rep. Rashida Tlaib have praised these well-established antisemites, and received their praise in return. Far from seeming bothered by the bigotry, they leaned into it, giving cover to the three now kicked out leaders. Here are five times the Squad embraced the antisemites.
1. AOC Says Sarsour Fights For the Flag
During the confirmation hearings for now Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, Sarsour stood up in the Senate chamber and began yelling to protest his nomination. It was a rather typical act for her, and it caught the attention of MoveOn.org, which tweeted video of the incident. With breathless praise, Ocasio-Cortez took the opportunity to congratulate Sarsour, saying she was “fighting for everything our flag represents.”
Our future is a shared responsibility.
This woman putting it all on the line for healthcare, women & LGBT+ rights is @lsarsour.
The far right constantly maligns her w/ false attacks + threats of violence.
Yet here she is, as always, fighting for everything our flag represents. https://t.co/QR4rYnclLt
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) September 5, 2018
2. AOC Blames Women’s March Antisemitism On…Trump?
A few months later at the Women’s March in January 2019, AOC was given a direct opportunity to address the concerns about antisemitism in the organization that have now led to the ouster of the three leaders. Surely, she would have a nuanced answer to explain it and soothe the concerns of those troubled. Not so much.
In a bizarre answer Ocasio-Cortez neglected to say anything about the Women’s March leadership and instead focused on some alleged antisemitism in the Trump administration. She made simply no acknowledgment of what now (and then) were clearly valid concerns.
WATCH: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez addresses question about those with concerns about anti-Semitism within the Women's March groups. https://t.co/qxhHH5CLXR pic.twitter.com/0B90LAZ186
— The Hill (@thehill) January 19, 2019
3. Omar Meets Sarsour After Joining Black-Jewish Caucus
This summer, sparks were flying over a Black-Jewish Congressional Caucus led in part by Rep. Lee Zeldin. Sarsour wasn’t very happy about it. In a tweet she called Zeldin a “bigot” who “campaigns with neo nazis and white supremacists.”
Omar joined this caucus, so one would think she would reject the idea of calling Zeldin, a Jewish man, a neo-Nazi. But no. In fact, she stood up for Sarsour in a tweet, saying, “Linda’s point still remains valid but my hope here is that Zeldin can learn and grow.”
Just to be clear, my endorsement of the caucus and willingness to unite our communities against the threats of White supremacy isn’t an endorsement of Zeldin’s bigotry!
Linda’s point still remains valid but my hope here is that Zeldin can learn and grow. https://t.co/2Fp6znt353
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) June 6, 2019
4. Omar Meets Sarsour On The First Day Of Congress
On her very first day in Congress back in January of 2018, Omar had a very special guest. That’s right, Linda Sarsour. What better way to cement and applaud Sarsour’s new influence in the halls of power than to invite her as one of the very first people the newly minted congresswoman met with? She even got a selfie!
5. Tlaib Gives Mallory Twitter Fist Bump
It wasn’t just Sarsour who caught some love from the Squad. Tamika Mallory, good buddy of the Jew-hating Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, earned a tweet and a fist bump emoji from Tlaib after the former praised her on Twitter. Tlaib promised that the GOP would not silence her.
I guess, technically that’s true. It was the Women’s March that ultimately silenced her for her antisemitism.
👊 We can't allow the GOP to silence us. https://t.co/lmBmBa33ab
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) May 13, 2019
Now that the Women’s March has denounced these bigoted women, its time that the Squad does, too. Their tacit support of antisemitism is well documented and must be addressed. But don’t expect that anytime soon. The Squad has hypnotized the Democrats, and any action to quell their support for bigotry seems extremely unlikely.
