Last week, Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar blamed AIPAC for U.S. politicians’ support for Israel. “It’s all about the Benjamins” she wrote on Twitter, sparking a firestorm of accusations of anti-Semitism. It’s all about the Benjamins baby ? https://t.co/KatcXJnZLV — Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) February 10, 2019 Whether we agree with Rep. Omar’s ill-fated batch of tweets…
A critique of a freshman Democratic congresswoman over her ill-considered tweets that began with a Forward editor had made its way to the White House by Tuesday, when President Trump called for the congresswoman’s resignation during a Cabinet meeting. Trump, who himself has been accused of invoking anti-Semitic tropes at various points over the past…
Ilhan Omar’s tweets blaming “the Benjamins” and AIPAC for U.S. politicians’ support of Israel launched a national conversation about anti-Semitic tropes, money in politics, and the role of lobbies in U.S. politics. Many, including the entire Democratic leadership, felt that Omar’s words invoked an anti-Semitic trope. Her tweet conjured the image of a Jewish cabal…
Once upon a time, anti-Zionist Jews vowed they’d stand up to anti-Semitism within their own ranks on the intersectional left. That claim is no longer credible. Unless it hits them straight in the face, it’s clear they are either not able or not willing to recognize anti-Semitism, at least when it’s coming from the left…
There are two stories this week about Rep. Ilhan Omar, the new Democratic congresswoman from Minnesota. But the trick is, you cannot understand one without the other. Let me explain. First, she tweeted that Republican attacks on her and Rep. Rashida Tlaib were “all about the Benjamins.” Her suggestion that money heavily influences politicians’ positions…
Watching Ilhan Omar confront attacks for her criticism of Israel has been disheartening, and revealing of the fraught discourse surrounding Israel in the United States. As a Palestinian living under Israeli occupation in the West Bank, having Omar, a United States Congressperson, speak up on our behalf has been a breath of fresh air. And…
Rep. Ilhan Omar, one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress, arrived in Washington to great fanfare in January. But soon after, she began to be criticized in the national media for a 2012 tweet saying that the Jewish state had “hypnotized the world” – a message that many felt echoed age-old anti-Semitic tropes…
This weekend, the internet combusted into an uproar after Representative Ilhan Omar tweeted “It’s All About The Benjamins Baby” with regards to American elected officials standing up for Israel. When Forward op-ed editor Batya Ungar-Sargon asked Omar who the money came from, Omar answered AIPAC. AIPAC! https://t.co/UdzaFUEfrh — Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) February 11, 2019 Ungar-Sargon…
