anti-Semitism

The Dire Consequences of Not Speaking Out

At a time when too many refuse to say what they really think, Steven Goldstein, the fearless and outspoken new executive director of the Anne Frank Center for Mutual Respect in New York isn’t pulling any punches. A self-described social justice advocate and former Rutgers University political science and law professor, Goldstein had a short answer when a conservative commentator on CNN asked him if he believed that Donald Trump was anti-Semitic.

“You bet,” he replied.

The man is willing to point out wrongdoing and bullying where he sees it—that’s why he’s our Revolutionist of the Week. The Anne Frank Center in New York, founded by Anne’s father, Otto Frank, is dedicated to standing up for the equal rights and mutual respect of all people. My mother fought with the Dutch underground during World War II and her deepest regret was that she didn’t do more to save her friends and neighbors during that awful time. I am heartened to know that the Center is fighting on in Anne’s name.

Goldstein, who writes all the press releases and tweets from the organization in plain language has taken Trump to task for his belated expression against anti-Semitism as “too little, too late” and engaged with Sean Spicer on Twitter about it. In a written statement he said, “The President’s sudden acknowledgement is a Band-Aid on the cancer of anti-Semitism that has infected his own administration.”

It’s this kind of revolutionist who inspires and motivates those around him. He is crystal clear about what a revolutionist needs to do in this political climate: “We have no pecking order in which we fight Anti-Semitism first, and Islamophobia and other hatred second,” he said. “We have to save every Anne. Never again must mean never again to anyone. Never again is now.”

Credit: Wikipedia Commons

Revolutionist of the Week: The Prosecutor Who is Teaching Tolerance

After defacing the school with racist and anti-Semitic graffiti, five teenagers will report on books addressing some of history’s most divisive and tragic periods. This novel sentencing requirement, instead of the usual community service and probation, was the brainchild of prosecuting attorney Alejandra Rueda. She told the New York Times that just being sentenced wasn’t going to bring the message home. “I just thought maybe if the read these books, it will make an impression on them, and they will stand up for people who are being oppressed,” she said. That is why we are naming her our Revolutionist of the Week.

Rueda came up with a brilliant idea. Most kids grow up to become bigots and racists because of ignorance and propaganda. Reading allows us to see life through other people’s eyes. Countering the propaganda by giving these children different perspectives, and showing them the perils and consequences of bigotry and hatred in the context of history, will have a profound impact on them. This is an outstanding idea. We should be encouraging everyone, youth as well as adults, to experience the writings of those who are different than them so they can reflect on what we all learned in kindergarten, the Ethic of Reciprocity, aka, the Golden Rule—Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

The Unsayable Can Now Be Said Thanks to Trump

Thanks to Trump the unsayable can now be said. “Go back to where you came from,” is the phrase of the moment. Something I have been warning about for a while.  While Trump fiddles with the inflamed rhetoric of the extreme right and fires up his supporters’ hatred the rest of us are facing more prejudice than ever. While comparisons to Hitler may seem overblown, there are frightening echoes of what took place in pre-World War II Germany. Roger Cohen explores the language of hate in this New York Times piece, How Dictatorships are Born.

Credit: Damon Winter/The New York Times