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Despite the continuing Israel-Hamas conflict, the pro-Israel organisation StopAntisemitism named Representative Rashida Tlaib their 2023 “Antisemite of the Year” above Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
Tlaib, a Michigan Democrat and the only Palestinian-American in Congress, has faced criticism for her stance on Israel throughout the crisis, and she has advocated for a cease-fire. Since Hamas struck Israel on October 7, 2023, the fighting has claimed the lives of almost 20,000 Palestinians and 1,200 Israelis. Israel, in turn, began a ground assault of Gaza, which has a population of around 2 million.
Critics argue that Tlaib’s words in response to the attack, as well as demands for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, are antisemitic, and that she has rejected Israel’s right to exist. Supporters, however, see the allegations as an attempt to divert attention away from her opposition to the Israeli government’s treatment of Palestinian people throughout the conflict.
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StopAntisemitism, a nonprofit whose mission is to expose “groups and individuals that espouse incitement towards the Jewish people and State and engage in antisemitic behaviours,” named her “Antisemite of the Year,” the organisation said Monday.
StopAntisemitism’s executive director, Liora Rez, said in a statement that Tlaib’s title “reflects a long history of antisemitism,” and that her response to Hamas’ attack was “unconscionable.”
“Tlaib not only victim-blamed Israel, but she also accused it of committing genocide against the Palestinians and continues to defend calls to ethnically cleanse Israel of Jews and genocide,” she stated in the letter.
The organisation notably chose Tlaib above Haniyeh, Hamas’ main political leader, and other members of the armed group who perpetrated the fatal attack on Israel. In supporting its decision, the organisation cited numerous of Tlaib’s utterances, including her labelling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “genocidal maniac” and criticisms of US assistance for Israel.
It also emphasised her usage of the mantra, “From the River to the Sea.” In November, the representative posted a video on X, previously Twitter, with the term, prompting outrage and ultimately leading to her censure by the House of Representatives.
The chant has varied connotations for each community. According to Tlaib, it is a “aspirational call for freedom, human rights, and peaceful coexistence, not death, destruction, or hate.”
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a Jewish advocacy organisation that combats antisemitism, describes it as “a call for a Palestinian state extending from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, territory that includes the State of Israel, which would mean the dismantling of the Jewish state.”
Haniyeh and model Gigi Hadid were among the other people who received the highest votes, according to the organisation. The group’s survey garnered over 15,000 votes. Ye, the musician formerly known as Kanye West, who earlier claimed on social media that he was “going death con [Defcon] 3 on Jewish people,” will earn the title in 2022.
What led to Tlaib receiving the 2023 ‘Antisemite of the Year’ award?
Tlaib is now one of just 26 congresspeople who have been legally censured, according to StopAntisemitism. Tlaib was censured for blaming Hamas’ attack on Israel on Israel.
In July, the congresswoman became one of just nine members of Congress to vote against a measure claiming Israel is not a racist or apartheid state. The same measure said that Congress rejects all kinds of antisemitism and bigotry.
Tlaib added to her series of incorrect allegations by claiming that Israel had carried out an airstrike on a Gazan hospital. The attack in question was carried out by a botched missile launch by Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Even when the US proved that the PIJ was responsible for the hospital bombing, Tlaib continued to promote false accusations that Israel was committing genocide.
Tlaib’s comments increased in November, when she recorded a video accusing US Vice President Joe Biden of backing “the genocide of the Palestinian people” and called for a cease-fire. She has called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “genocidal maniac” and criticised the United States for sponsoring “massacres” in Gaza.
While Tlaib has regularly accused Israel of genocide, she has faced criticism for supporting the phrase “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” According to the phrase, a Palestinian state would exist between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, thus erasing Israel off the map. This phrase is supposed to advocate for a single-state solution, which many deem genocidal.
Tlaib claimed that the phrase was problematic, stating on X that “From the river to the sea is an aspirational call for freedom, human rights, and peaceful coexistence, not death, destruction, or hate.”
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