Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday attributed the rise in anti-Semitism on social media platforms to conspiracy theories surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking at a State Department conference on the subject, Pompeo, as well as an international collection of leaders, addressed growing concerns about anti-Semitism spreading online.
“They ludicrously blame the Jewish people for the spread of COVID-19, not the real culprit which engaged in the cover-up, the Chinese Communist Party,” Pompeo said in reference to troll accounts across all social media platforms.
The conference featured remarks from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who also emphasized the role the pandemic has played in amplifying hatred toward Jews.
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who has been a loud Democratic voice against anti-Semitism, reiterated both Pompeo’s and Netanyahu’s remarks about the pandemic, adding that because so many people have constant access to the internet as they are stuck in their homes, anti-Semitic speech is a rapidly growing issue.
“In many ways, it has never been easier for anti-Semitism to spread,” she said.
Throughout the year, various watchdogs have noted upticks in instances of anti-Semitism translating from online speech into action, particularly in areas with large Orthodox Jewish populations. Many Jewish communities in New York City especially have complained that since the pandemic began, videos and statements online have heightened citywide anti-Semitic incidents, which were already on the rise.
A series of Jewish groups sued New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in October, arguing that many of his coronavirus regulations target Jewish people specifically and are “blatantly anti-Semitic.”
An April report from an Israeli research group found that since March, global anti-Semitism was rising online. A similar report in July found that the trend has continued to tick upward throughout the year.
