Once again, we have seen antisemitism show up in Orange County.
In the past two weeks residents in multiple cities received flyers with antisemitic rhetoric.
OC Human Relations and the members of the Hate Crime Prevention Network remain united against antisemitism.
We know that this misguided targeting of the Jewish Community is a form of hate and bigotry that dehumanizes our friends and neighbors and uses tired antisemitic tropes and stereotypes that have been weaponized countless times to incite exclusion, discrimination, and violence against Jews.
Antisemitism takes many forms. The conspiracy theories in the flyers that were distributed draw upon hundreds of years of antisemitic ideas that were used to portray Jews as evil and/or greedy and used to justify violence – including the murder of 6 million Jews in the Holocaust. What has happened in Orange County is part of a larger effort in the nation to promote these antisemitic ideas and falsehoods.
At a time in our county when hate activity is on an unprecedented multi-year rise, it is crucial that we continue to send the message that we will not tolerate antisemitism. We must ensure that the propaganda in these flyers has no air to grow.
We will continue to call out antisemitism when and where we see it. It is our responsibility to identify it and educate ourselves and others about all forms of bigotry, hate and oppression and, in this case, antisemitism.
Please join us in committing to rejecting antisemitism and any attempts to target our Jewish neighbors for who they are.
