Condemning antisemitism and blatant support for Hamas should be a societal norm, not a notable event that needs to make headlines or be celebrated. Prominent Democrat politicians shouldn’t need certain acts to be so egregious, indefensible, and morally unambiguous to speak up for the Jews, but that appears to be where US politics is at the moment.
On late Thursday night, the Palestinian Assembly for Liberation (PAL-Awda) protested outside an Israeli real estate event in a local synagogue in New York. Videos from the protest circulated on social media, showing protesters holding Palestinian flags and signs, wearing keffiyehs, and chanting.
The group made it clear how it feels regarding the legitimacy of Hamas as an armed resistance group in wars against Israel. “Say it loud, say it clear, we support Hamas here,” the protesters could be seen chanting.
Traditionally, Democratic Party politicians have tried and failed to walk this fine line of protecting free speech and legitimate criticism of Israel while also disavowing genuine support for terror.
Many critics of Israel argue (disingenuously) that slogans like “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” and “Globalize the intifada” are nothing more than calls to resistance of an illegitimate military occupation, without any subtext of calls for terrorism or genocidal actions against Jews.
So when these protesters left no room for doubt by saying they believe that Hamas is a legitimate group and that its actions are justified, an opportunity presented itself for Democrats to take the moral high ground. And they did.
Newly elected New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who, on his first day in office, had canceled an executive order that New York City adopt the IHRA definition of antisemitism, said, “Chants in support of a terrorist organization have no place in our city. We will continue to ensure New Yorkers’ safety entering and exiting houses of worship, as well as the constitutional right to protest.”
Prominent Democratic figures, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, New York Attorney-General Letitia James, and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, hopped on the bandwagon the next morning, condemning the chants hours apart from each other, while emphasizing Hamas’s status as a terrorist organization.
AOC condemns pro-Hamas chants
On Saturday, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also posted on X/Twitter, condemning the chants, stating that “marching into a predominantly Jewish neighborhood and leading with a chant saying ‘We support Hamas’ is a disgusting and antisemitic thing to do.”
Generally, these figures tend to be very careful with any condemnation of pro-Palestinian protesters so as not to anger much of their voter base, and there also isn’t usually such a massive showing of condemnation from so many Democrats in a very short amount of time.
It raises the question: What internal dialogue is going on in the Democratic Party?
The rapidity suggests that memos could have made the rounds, suggesting that Democrats take the easy layup of condemning support for Hamas.
However, there could also be a deeper internal dialogue within the Democratic Party about addressing antisemitism more seriously.
Midterms are coming up soon in the United States, and condemning support for a literal terrorist organization is an easy political win to score with minimal effort.
Or at least, it should be an easy win.
Every Democrat who made one of these posts received severe backlash from both anti-Israel and pro-Israel accounts.
On the one hand, they were “stifling legitimate and moral Palestinian resistance against the occupation,” and on the other hand, they had no right to comment on “a hostile antisemitic environment that they helped cultivate,” users commented.
The Jerusalem Post believes that condemning Hamas and its supporters is always the correct and moral thing to do, regardless of who is saying it. That being said, the fact that these politicians received such backlash from people who agree with their statements highlights the problem.
Standing up against antisemitism needs to be done all the time, not just when it is convenient. Condemning support for a genocidal terror organization needs to be a reflex, not a political strategy that’s deemed acceptable and then sent out in a memo.
The Democrats who made these statements did the right thing in this instance, but it was also the bare minimum.
Heading into the new year, let’s hope cases such as this, where hate is called out and condemned, become the basic human reaction, rather than a miracle that deserves its own headlines.