Lisa Katz — Chief Government Affairs Officer of the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) and former New Castle (New York) Town Supervisor — issued the following statement in response to Richmond (California) Mayor Eduardo Martinez’s recent social media posts promoting antisemitic conspiracy theories about the Dec. 14 antisemitic terror attack at a Hanukkah celebration in Sydney, Australia:Â
“Mayors have a civic duty to fight hate, not incite it. When an elected leader amplifies conspiracies that deny Jewish victimhood or blame Jews for atrocities committed against them, it is not ‘commentary,’ but rather a modern repackaging of classic antisemitic tropes that have long fueled violence targeting Jews. That conduct is incompatible with public trust and makes Mayor Martinez unfit to hold office.”
“This is not theoretical. Fifteen people were murdered at a public Hanukkah gathering in Bondi Beach. In moments like this, leaders must help protect a targeted community, not further endanger it by legitimizing the same false narratives that inspire extremists.”
“In stark contrast to Mayor Martinez, nearly 600 elected officials from across the globe signed a CAM-organized letter this week expressing solidarity with the Australian Jewish community and calling for firm, concrete action to protect Jewish life and hold both perpetrators and propagators of antisemitic hate accountable. That message is just as pertinent in Richmond as everywhere else. We urge the Richmond City Council to formally censure Mayor Martinez’s behavior, and demand a direct apology to Richmond’s Jewish residents, as well as the Jewish people around the world.”
Read more:
Snapshot Study: Bondi Beach Hanukkah Massacre Triggers Online Surge of Anti-Israel Conspiracy Claims
