White House rebukes Elon Musk for Alleged Promotion of Antisemitic content
Shafaq News/ The White House criticized Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Friday for promoting content deemed "Antisemitic and racist" on social media.
Musk endorsed a post accusing "Jewish communities" of fostering "hatred against whites," drawing condemnation from White House spokesman Andrew Bates.
In response to Musk's agreement with the social media post, Bates called it "unacceptable to repeat the hideous lie behind the most fatal act of Antisemitism in American history at any time." The statement appeared to reference the 2018 mass shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, where 11 people were killed by a gunman who adhered to the antisemitic "white genocide" conspiracy theory.
Bates emphasized that such promotion of hate goes against American core values and condemned the act in the strongest terms. The White House statement highlighted the proximity of Musk's post to the deadly attacks in Israel by Hamas on October 7, describing it as "the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust."
"We all have a responsibility to bring people together against hate and an obligation to speak out against anyone who attacks the dignity of their fellow Americans and compromises the safety of our communities," Bates stated.
Musk, who has a significant following on social media, including over 163 million accounts on X, faced criticism for amplifying content that drew attention to antisemitic conspiracy theories.
In the same social media thread, Musk also criticized the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), accusing them of promoting "de facto anti-white racism or anti-Asian racism or racism of any kind." ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt responded on X, warning of the danger of using influence to validate and promote antisemitic theories, especially during a time when antisemitism is on the rise.
Musk, the world's richest man, has a history of controversy related to antisemitic comments. In 2018, he faced accusations after a tweet about press ownership, blaming a "Twitter glitch" for the controversy and clarifying his reference to "powerful people."
Antisemitism has been on the rise globally, with a nearly 400% increase in antisemitic incidents in the United States following the recent conflict between Israel and Hamas, according to the Anti-Defamation League.
