Dov Hikind, a former Democratic state lawmaker from New York and a Jewish American, was removed from an event Sunday after asking Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI-13) about her anti-Semitism.
“What about your anti-Semitism? What about your blood libel against Israel?” a video of the event shows Hikind saying before being escorted out by security.
Police just ejected me from an event of @Muslims4Peace at @RutgersU which was a fine event until @RashidaTlaib showed up. I challenged her about her antisemitism and spreading of an anti-Jewish blood libel! She had no answer for me.
They will never silence us!
Cc @IlhanMN pic.twitter.com/vyMGCGGxlX
— Dov Hikind (@HikindDov) February 9, 2020
The comments were made during Tlaib’s appearance Sunday at a Muslims for Peace event at Rutgers University.
Hikind was referring to Tlaib’s retweet of a comment from Hanan Ashrawi, a member of the Palestine Liberation Organization Executive Committee, who spread false claims that a Palestinian boy was “kidnapped by a herd of violent Israeli settlers, assaulted and thrown in a water well.”
The Times of Israel later reported that the boy apparently slipped and drowned in a reservoir of rainwater.
“My apologies for retweeting something that’s not fully verified,” Ashrawi wrote on Twitter after deleting her initial tweet. “It seems the news of his being kidnapped is not certain.”
The CEO of the Anti-Defamation League accused Tlaib of “blood libel” and demanded an apology from the freshman lawmaker, The Michigan Star reported.
Tlaib eventually said she will “strive” to hold herself to the “highest standards,” but Hikind told The Washington Examiner that “she owes the Jewish people an apology, period.”
In this era of inaccurate and manipulative news, I will also strive to hold myself to the highest standards for what I share. Know that I always seek truth as we uplift the oppressed and fight for equality, justice, and freedom. https://t.co/wma0ykjZbF
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) January 28, 2020
“She point-blank accused Jews of killing a child,” he said. “I went to confront her. This is as fundamental as anything, this is not disagreeing with her on some policy matter like abortion or something, this is blood libel—when you say something like this, and it spreads all over the world.”
“The Muslim community looks up to her,” he continued. “When she says something like that, it’s incredibly damaging.”
In a video posted to Twitter, Hikind, founder of Americans Against Antisemitism, said he was “ready to join” Muslims for Peace “until Tlaib came on the stage.”
After challenging @RashidaTlaib over her shameless antisemitism, and her recent spreading of an anti-Jewish blood libel, I got ejected.
Rashida had no response for me, but @AmericansAA showed that we will never be silenced or intimidated! pic.twitter.com/ZRzZuHGPNh
— Dov Hikind (@HikindDov) February 9, 2020
“Tlaib, who represents everything that is divisive. She is someone who represents anti-Semitism. She, only one week ago, was involved in a blood libel against the Jewish people,” he said. “Blood libel has caused hate towards the Jewish people. It causes anti-Semitism. It causes violence. What a freaking hypocrite she is! This is one of the people who represents a man running for president of the United States. What a farce.”
Hikind sued Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY-14) in July for blocking him on Twitter and “silencing her critics.”
Tlaib is one of the most outspoken critics of Israel in Congress and is a supporter of the anti-Israel BDS movement. She and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN-05) are frequent targets of President Donald Trump, who called them anti-Semites during a recent rally.
The Israeli government barred both congresswomen from traveling to the country in August because of their “suspected provocations and promotion of BDS.”
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Anthony Gockowski is managing editor of The Minnesota Sun and The Ohio Star. Follow Anthony on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Images “Dov Hikind” by Dov Hikind.
