ADL faces criticism for defending Elon Musk’s hand-raising gesture. political news
Washington DC – After Elon Musk apparently gave a Nazi salute at an inauguration rally for United States President Donald Trump, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) rushed to defend the SpaceX founder.
The self-described anti-Semitism watchdog and “leading anti-hate organization in the world” dismissed Musk’s raised hand as “an awkward gesture in a moment of excitement” in a social media post on Monday.
However, months earlier, Jonathan Greenblatt, head of the staunchly pro-Israel ADL, had compared the Palestinian keffiyeh to the Nazi swastika.
Activists say the contradiction between the ADL’s hasty defense of Musk and its efforts to discredit Palestinians and their supporters shows the group is more concerned with silencing voices critical of Israel than fighting anti-Semitism. Focusing more on.
“The ADL has been very clear about where it stands,” said Beth Miller, political director of Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP).
“They have made it as clear as possible that they are not a reputable source of information when it comes to anti-Semitism. “They are really not prioritizing the safety of Jewish communities at all.”
Miller called the ADL a “hate group” dedicated to discrediting Palestinian rights advocates.
For years, ADL has been a go-to NGO for government agencies and the corporate world when it comes to anti-Semitism, hate crimes, and broader civil rights issues.
The group has hosted top Israeli and American politicians, FBI directors, celebrities, and businessmen.
In the group’s annual “audit” of anti-Semitic incidents in the US – which last year included “some expressions of opposition to Zionism, as well as support for resistance against Israel” – it is frequently cited by government agencies and law enforcement agencies.
Nevertheless, Palestinian rights supporters and US-based Muslim groups have long warned about the ADL and its staunch support for Israel.
In recent years, the group has come under increasing criticism for the perception that it has become soft toward right-wingers accused of bigotry, as long as they support Israel.
These allegations increased further after Musk’s gesture on Monday.
Progressive Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrote on social media in response to ADL’s defense of Musk, “To be clear, you are defending the Heil Hitler salute which was repeated for emphasis and clarity.”
“People can now officially stop listening to you as any reputable source of information.”
To be clear, you are defending the Heil Hitler salute which was repeated for emphasis and clarity.
People can now officially stop listening to you as any reputable source of information. You work for them. Thank you for making this very clear to everyone. https://t.co/0gLdMCU3UV
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) 21 January 2025
Musk’s gesture
Speaking at Capital One Arena after Trump’s inauguration, Musk placed his hand on his chest, then quickly raised his hand and thanked the crowd for electing the Republican president.
The 53-year-old billionaire then turned around and did it again.
Their motion resembled the Nazi gesture – known as “Sieg Heil”, German for “Victory to victory” – which has its roots in the ancient Roman salute.
“My heart goes out to you. It is thanks to you that the future of civilization is assured,” Musk said.
While it’s not unusual for politicians to extend their arms to greet an audience, the combination of Musk’s rhetoric about “civility” and the repeated gesture raised many eyebrows.
Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a New York University history professor who writes about fascism and totalitarianism, said in a social media post that Musk’s gesture was “a Nazi salute – and very belligerent, too”.
Musk has not detailed what happened, but he rejected the allegations, saying his critics “need better dirty tricks”.
“The ‘everyone is Hitler’ attack is very tiring,” Musk wrote on X.
But Matan Arad-Neiman, a spokesman for IfNotNow, a Jewish progressive group, rejected Musk’s categorical denial.
“I’m a descendant of Holocaust survivors, and when I see one I think of a Nazi salute, and that’s exactly what Elon Musk was doing,” Arad-Neiman told Al Jazeera.
He said the ADL’s defense of Musk was “obscene”. He linked the group’s response to that of anti-war protesters pressing for a ceasefire in Gaza, where Israel has waged a devastating military campaign through 2023.
Arad-Neiman said, “It is not surprising – though it is shameful – that the ADL has focused its attention in recent years on Palestinian human rights and taking action against anti-war protesters.”
ADL-Musk controversy
The ADL’s endorsement of Musk would have been unimaginable less than a year and a half ago, when the billionaire entrepreneur threatened to sue the pro-Israel group over allegations that it was blocking companies from advertising on X after acquiring the platform Was.
Musk’s attacks, which the ADL described as “dangerous and extremely irresponsible”, were also considered anti-Semitic by critics. Some criticized Musk for blaming a Jewish group for the shortcomings of his new company.
But weeks after accusing X of “promoting” anti-Semitism, the ADL welcomed the platform’s “intention” to address anti-Semitism.
In October 2023, Greenblatt described Musk as an “amazing entrepreneur and extraordinary innovator”, positively comparing him to leading industrialist Henry Ford, who is widely believed to be a proponent of anti-Semitic views. Were.
Even after the differences between Musk and the ADL appeared to be resolved, the Ax boss responded to a post accusing Jewish communities of promoting “dialectical hatred” against white people, writing: “You told the real truth “.
Musk visited Israel in November that year, a few weeks after the war on Gaza began, and met with the country’s leaders.
Arad-Neiman said that radicals should not be able to “excuse their anti-Semitism” by saying that they support Israel.
“This is unacceptable,” he told Al Jazeera. “It’s offensive to the vast majority of American Jews who are horrified by people like the Proud Boys, by people like Elon Musk, by people like Donald Trump who sympathize with white supremacists and fascists.”
In addition to his comments on the Jewish people, Musk has voiced support for far-right groups around the world.
Last month, he sparked outrage when he said only Germany’s far-right party, the AfD, could save the country.
Musk has also raised the case of British anti-Muslim campaigner Tommy Robinson, who is in jail for contempt of court under a defamation case. A court found that Robinson had falsely accused a Syrian refugee schoolboy of attacking “young English girls”.
The ADL recently condemned Robinson, whose legal name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, as an “anti-Muslim bigot.”
‘Our speech is being censored’
Abed Ayoub, executive director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), said he wants the ADL to take advantage of the same cautious approach and skepticism it gave Musk to members of the Arab and Muslim communities.
“This organization has a history of censoring our speech and going after our speech and our freedom of expression, and it has made life difficult for many Arabs, Palestinians, Muslims and our supporters in this country,” Ayoub told Al Jazeera. Has given.”
The ADL opposed a proposed mosque in New York in 2010 because it was too close to the site of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, and favored far-right and Islamophobic groups.
The group has acknowledged more than a decade later that its position on the mosque was “wrong”.
Recently, the ADL has accused protesters supporting Palestinian rights – including left-wing Jewish groups – of promoting anti-Semitism.
Earlier this month, the ADL featured a Jewish Insider story on its website criticizing CBS News for interviewing Josh Paul and Hala Rarit, two former US officials who have criticized Washington for Israel’s war on Gaza. Had left his government job in protest of his support.
The article highlights an ambiguous relationship that Paul and Raritan have with the civil rights group Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).
Last year, Greenblatt criticized members of then-President Joe Biden’s administration for meeting with Michigan-based Arab American News publisher Osama Siblani, who she called “sympathetic” to Hezbollah and Hamas.
The ADL has also been a staunch supporter of Israel’s war on Gaza, which rights groups and UN advocates have described as genocide.
Ayub said it is easy to get behind the ADL’s “mission on paper”: fighting hatred and bigotry. But more people are becoming aware of the group’s true status, he said.
“We’re starting to see cracks in his support, and we’re starting to see people calling him out, especially on things like defending Elon Musk at the pace he did,” Ayoub told Al Jazeera.
The ADL did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment by the time of publication.
On Tuesday, Bend the Arc, a progressive Jewish group, began circulating a petition calling on the ADL to withdraw its defense of Musk.
“The ADL claims to be an expert on anti-Semitism,” the petition states.
“They are quick to smear pro-Palestinian students, black and brown elected officials, writers and professors on charges of anti-Semitism. But when the richest man in the world gave the Nazi salute while the world watched, they came to his defense?”
