A Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez social media post got her into an interesting situation.
Leaders are expressing strong condemnation following a protest outside an exhibit commemorating the victims of the Hamas terror attack on the Nova Music Festival, which occurred on October 7 and ignited the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
On Monday night, pro-Palestinian demonstrators lit smoke canisters and flares outside The Nova Music Festival Exhibition in Lower Manhattan. This exhibit serves as a tribute to the victims of the terror attack. The protest drew harsh criticism from several political figures.
Appalling antisemitism in NYC — protesting an exhibit commemorating the victims of the massacre at the Nova music festival. The only logical conclusion one can make when you show up to protest against people who were murdered by Hamas, is that you support Hamas and the murder of… pic.twitter.com/c3eyZwRXvV
— Adam Milstein (@AdamMilstein) June 12, 2024
Mayor Eric Adams visited the exhibit and met with victims’ families on Tuesday, voicing his disapproval of the protestors’ actions. “You do not call for peace and wave flags of Hamas. You do not call for peace and then come to a memorial site. That’s like you are desecrating the graves,” Adams stated.
Any New Yorker who stands for peace cannot stand next to those waving Hamas and Hezbollah flags, especially at an exhibit commemorating the victims of the Nova Music Festival massacre. That is pure anti-Semitism.
The NYPD has overseen thousands of peaceful protests, but it is… pic.twitter.com/dhViBGfcMn
— Mayor Eric Adams (@NYCMayor) June 11, 2024
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries also condemned the protest, labeling it as “unconscionable and un-American.” He criticized the participants for chanting antisemitic slogans and endorsing the actions of Hamas. Jeffries declared, “The egregious behavior on display designed to justify the killing of Jews has no place in a civilized society. We will not tolerate it.”
Pro-Hamas demonstrators violently set off smoke bombs in front of the Nova Exhibition in NYC which commemorates the hundreds of Israelis murdered by Hamas at a music festival.
When people show you who they are believe them. pic.twitter.com/VsY1UlFiId
— Israel ישראל (@Israel) June 11, 2024
Representatives Jamaal Bowman and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also denounced the protest, highlighting the antisemitic nature of the event. Ocasio-Cortez emphasized that “Antisemitism has no place in our city nor any broader movement that centers human dignity and liberation.”
The callousness, dehumanization, and targeting of Jews on display at last night’s protest outside the Nova Festival exhibit was atrocious antisemitism – plain and simple.
Antisemitism has no place in our city nor any broader movement that centers human dignity and liberation.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) June 11, 2024
Her comments ignited a firestorm from both sides; below are a couple of examples.
The callousness, dehumanization, and targeting of Jews on display at last night’s protest outside the Nova Festival exhibit was atrocious antisemitism – plain and simple.
Antisemitism has no place in our city nor any broader movement that centers human dignity and liberation.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) June 11, 2024
The callousness, dehumanization, and targeting of Jews on display at last night’s protest outside the Nova Festival exhibit was atrocious antisemitism – plain and simple.
Antisemitism has no place in our city nor any broader movement that centers human dignity and liberation.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) June 11, 2024
AOC went off trying to defend herself in a long social media thread, “It is laughable.We can mobilize to end the atrocities in Gaza and combat the rise of antisemitism at the same time. Bigotry in organizing spaces imperils everyone’s work. I work to end the war, protect ALL my constituents, and fight AIPAC. Believe it or not, you can do all 3. Additionally, the accusation that my disgust at antisemitism and bigotry must be because I’m getting paid ALSO reeks of antisemitism. Especially given the absolute mountain of evidence of how I fight AIPAC + other lobbies every day. It’s unsubstantiated, conspiratorial, gross. I am one of the only members of Congress to cosponsor the ceasefire reso since Day 1. I consistently vote NO on military budgets, including further weapons to Israeli gov. I think Netanyahu is a war criminal. AIPAC targets me.AND I find antisemitism disgusting. Deal with it.”
