Army officer makes Holocaust joke on TikTok
2nd Lt. Nathan Freihofer in an August 31, 2020 TikTok. Freihofer made a Holocaust joke in the since-deleted post. Image by Twitter
By PJ Grisar August 31, 2020
TikTok, whatever your feelings on the security of its Chinese ownership, is a hub for creative content — much of it Jewish. But like any other platform, it’s also vulnerable to the contributions of the crass, misguided and offensively unfunny.
On Monday, 2nd Lt. Nathan Freihofer, a popular TikTok user with nearly 3 million followers, made a painfully hacky Holocaust joke in a since-deleted post.
2nd Lt. Nathan Freihofer, a popular TikTok influencer with nearly 3 mil followers, posted a joke about the holocaust.
“If you get offended, get the fuck out because it’s a joke,” he says.
May be contrary to Army’s “Think, Type, Post” social media policy, but hey what do I know pic.twitter.com/TpkLr1xhPt
— Paul Szoldra (@PaulSzoldra) August 31, 2020
“Reason 1 million why I will never be verified: dark jokes,” Freihofer, an officer in the U.S. Army, said in the video, before asking what a Jewish person’s favorite “Pokemon” character would be.
“Ash,” he answers with a smirk before laughing like the world’s most punchable dolphin. “If you get offended, get the f—k out because it’s a joke,” he concludes. “Don’t be a p—y.”
Given the spate of young TikTokers roleplaying cremated Shoah victims and the general trend of antisemitism on the app, this was the last thing we needed.
But the good news is there may be consequences for once.
A spokesman for the 18th Airborne Corps, where Freihofer serves as a soldier, told Task & Purpose, “The command is taking immediate action looking into this,” adding that several conversations had been already had at the “highest levels” of the corps.
The post is a likely violation of the Army’s “Think, Type, Post” policy, which insists that officers only send out messages that “demonstrate dignity and respect for self and others.”
Thankfully it’s not all bad news on TikTok. If you need a palate cleanser from lazy antisemitism, you can always watch this young woman’s videos of shtetl life. We’d say they should be required viewing for Lt. Freihofer, but, let’s be honest, his TikTok privileges should be revoked — at the very least.
PJ Grisar is the Forward’s culture reporter. He can be reached at Grisar@Forward.com.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
