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Dozens of ambassadors and diplomatic officials from across North and South America gathered at the Organization of American States (OAS) headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Thursday for a special forum — “Human Rights in Crisis: The Inter-American Role in Combating the Global Rise of Antisemitism” — organized by the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM).
Referring to the global surge of antisemitic incidents triggered by the October 7th Hamas massacre in Israel, Hector Shamis — Advisor to OAS Secretary-General Luis Almagro — said, “Many of us started to feel what our grandparents used to tell us about Europe in the 1930s. We’ve started to live it all of a sudden since October 7th in places like Israel and here as well.”
“We have denounced terrorism in all its forms,” Shamis added, noting that the OAS has designated Hamas as a terrorist organization in 2021.
“It is crucial to develop initiatives to fight against antisemitism throughout the region,” he stated. “The OAS has been at the forefront of these efforts.”
“We need to remember that dignity united humanity after the Holocaust,” he said. “Dignity that belongs to everyone. It cannot be conditioned.”
Deputy Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism at the U.S. Department of State Aaron Keyak emphasized, “Antisemitism comes from across the political spectrum. Unless you are calling out the antisemitism right next to you, ultimately you are weaponizing antisemitism for politics, which undermines the fight against antisemitism.”
“No region is immune from antisemitism,” he said. “Antisemitism is fundamentally a threat to democracy and order.”
“Targeting Jewish communities with hate and violence is not protecting the rights of Palestinians, it’s antisemitism,” Keyak continued. “There is no context where calling for the genocide of Jews is not antisemitic.”
Spanish journalist and former politician Pilar Rahola — who recently embarked on a CAM-organized international speaking tour — implored the audience, “Each member of the OAS has an obligation to fight antisemitism in each of your countries.”
“Antisemitism right now is the head problem in the world,” she posited. “Nothing else is equal to its dimension and its danger. Antisemitism is not about Jews, it’s about non-Jews. Non-Jews have the responsibility to fight against it.”
“After the Second World War, we thought antisemitism would go down,” Rahola went on to say. “It killed millions of Jews, but it didn’t kill antisemitism. When antisemitism has increased through history, it leads to destroying societies.”
“As a mother, I’m deeply concerned about young people,” she stated. “They believe they are standing for liberal values when they attack Israel and Jews. We see decent people with Hamas flags because they think it’s the right thing to do. We are failing in educating the young people. Young people are the consequences of failure from the leaders.”
 Other speakers included H.E. Ambassador Washington Abdala, Permanent Representative of Uruguay to the OAS, and Rabbi Nissim Elnecavé, Rabbi and Cantor of the Temple Moses – Sephardic Congregation of Florida in Miami.
CAM Director of Hispanic Outreach Shay Salamon, the main coordinator of Thursday’s forum, said, “Each of you is a fundamental agent of change in fighting discrimination, prejudice, and hatred toward Jews in your societies. I hope this event is the beginning of many initiatives and activities we can carry out with the OAS.”
CAM’s outreach in Latin America began more than two years ago, and since then it has worked diligently to build meaningful partnerships and friendships with influential leaders, lawmakers, community organizations, and civil society activists from a diverse assortment of religious, political and cultural backgrounds in the region to combat the world’s oldest hatred together.
During this time, CAM en Español has emerged as an important voice in the battle against antisemitism in Latin America, with a growing coalition engaged in impactful activities in countries including Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Panama, and Guatemala, among others.
CAM en Español has organized regional summits hosted by Uruguay in 2023, Panama in 2022, and Guatemala in 2021.
Immediately after the October 7th attack, CAM en Español jumped into action to mobilize support for Israel and respond to incidents of antisemitism across Latin America, meeting with regional leaders, holding educational webinars, promoting social media campaigns, and raising funds for Israeli emergency relief organizations.
