A diverse coalition of close to 10,000 Christians, along with nearly 150 Jewish leaders, including prominent rabbis, have come together to address the disturbing uptick in hate speech targeting Jews since Elon Musk acquired Twitter, since renamed “X,” in 2022.
Faithful America, a Christian organization dedicated to social justice, has been at the forefront of this initiative. Recognizing their historical involvement in perpetuating antisemitism, Christians are taking a principled stand against Musk’s actions. Faithful America is calling on its members and the wider Christian community to denounce Musk’s attacks on the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a prominent organization committed to combatting antisemitism and extremism.
The organization referenced a letter, published on Friday, jointly issued with Jewish leaders, paints a grave picture of the escalating antisemitism on X. It unequivocally states, “X has become a breeding ground for antisemitism and represents one of the largest dangers to Jews in years. If something does not change, we know what will happen: hate speech and radicalization are always the precursor to violence.”
Musk’s adversarial stance towards the ADL has only intensified the situation. He has actively promoted anti-ADL hashtags initiated by white nationalists and even threatened legal action against the organization, accusing them of responsibility for X’s declining advertising revenue.
Online expressions of racism and hatred often foreshadow offline acts of terror, underscoring the urgency of addressing hate speech on social media platforms. Faithful America, alongside the Christian community, echoes the concerns raised by Jewish leaders, scholars, and organizations. They are collectively urging corporate advertisers to sever their ties with X, sending a unified message against antisemitism and white supremacist hatred.
Quoting directly from the petition initiated by Faithful America, it states, “We, the undersigned, stand together to denounce antisemitism in all its forms. We call on Elon Musk to take immediate and meaningful action to combat hate speech on X. We also implore corporate advertisers to cease their association with this platform until tangible steps are taken to address this crisis.”
100 Jewish leaders decry antisemitism on X
Last week, one hundred prominent Jewish leaders, representing a diverse array of backgrounds and affiliations, joined forces to decry the surge in antisemitic discourse on X and to call attention to the role of its owner, Musk.
The list of leaders is varied, and includes rabbis from all religious streams, including leaders who aren’t affiliated to any stream. Though, a majority of the those who have signed are on the liberal side of the political map, but there are a number who are more conservative.
Under the campaign titled “X Out Hate,” they wrote that “We are a group of rabbis, leaders of Jewish organizations, artists, activists, and academics,” the letter stated. “We have diverse ideologies and beliefs, but we have come together to address the danger Elon Musk and X represent to Jews and others.”
Also last week, Musk, the world’s wealthiest individual, tentatively agreed to visit Auschwitz following a heartfelt request from European Jewish Association (EJA) Chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin on Thursday.
This pivotal moment unfolded during a live discussion on Musk’s X platform, where Margolin implored Musk “to walk there, to feel it, to understand it,” and Musk, in reflection, offered a tentative yes to the proposal. This profound gesture comes against the backdrop of escalating tensions between Musk and the organized Jewish community, driven by a surge in antisemitism on his social media platform.
Among the participants in the discussion with Musk were conservative media figure Ben Shapiro; Rabbi Ari Lamm, CEO of Bnai Zion; Rabbi Abraham Cooper of the Simon Wiesenthal Center; Natan Sharansky, former chairman of the Jewish Agency; Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, an author and social media influencer; Adv. Alan Dershowitz; Rabbi Menachem Margolin, chairman and founder of the European Jewish Association; Rabbi Manis Friedman, co-founder of Bais Chana Institute of Jewish Studies; and potentially Reuven (Ruvi) Rivlin, former president of Israel.
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