Linda Sarsour whitewashes Rep. Ilhan Omar's antisemitism - StandWithUS

Sarsour also excused Omar's antisemitic comments because Omar is Somalian-born, and wouldn't have known better.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Linda Sarsour speaks onstage during the Women's March on Washington on January 21, 2017 in Washington, DC. (photo credit: THEO WARGO/GETTY IMAGES/AFP)
Linda Sarsour speaks onstage during the Women's March on Washington on January 21, 2017 in Washington, DC.
(photo credit: THEO WARGO/GETTY IMAGES/AFP)
Women's March co-chair and BDS supporter Linda Sarsour whitewashed Rep. Ilhan Omar's antisemitism in a video released on Thursday by StandWithUS, a pro-Israel advocacy group.
"But what has happened often from White Jews when they call you call an antisemite, is they look at Muslim women from an orientalist trope, that we are inherently antisemitic because we are Muslims, right?" Sarsour ranted in a speech as she was talking about Omar and her comments that many Jewish groups have called antisemitic.
"It's a stereotype that has been used often against the Muslim community. That we are antisemitic until proven otherwise. That we are guilty until proven innocent. It's not okay."
Sarsour also excused Omar's antisemitic comments because Omar is Somalian-born, and wouldn't have known better.
"She didn't know nothing in Somalia, about no antisemitism. This is something she is learning along the way now that she is a legislator."
It is not clear when the video of Sarsour as taken.
When StandWithUs posted the video it wrote, "Is anyone even surprised?"
"Linda Sarsour, BDS activist and Women’s March Co-Founder whitewashes the antisemitisms from Rep. Ilhan Omar, claiming that Omar 'didn't know about antisemitism' and blames the 'white Jews' for saying she's antisemitic."
Omar was rebuked in mid-February for tweeting “all about the Benjamins,” suggesting that AIPAC, an Israel lobbyist group, was paying politicians for support. She was also accused of propagating that Jews have dual loyalty, an age-old antisemitic trope, when she said "the political influence in this country that says it is okay to push for allegiance to a foreign country,” at an event in March.
There was also a tweet from 2012, that was later deleted, where Omar wrote, “Israel has hypnotized the world, may Allah awaken the people and help them see the evil doings of Israel.” Omar later apologized for this tweet.
Not all Jews find Omar’s comments reprehensible. In March, more than 2,000 Jews, including Naomi Klein and Illan Pappé signed a letter with their support for Omar.


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