Anti-Defamation League condemns Elon Musk for ‘engaging with highly toxic, antisemitic campaign’
Elon Musk has been condemned for liking posts considered ‘antisemitic’ by the ADL. (Getty)
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has publicly condemned Elon Musk’s threat to sue them as an “antisemitic campaign”.
The owner of the social media platform accused the not-for-profit ADL of “trying to kill this platform” with its reports on the rise of hate speech across the site since his acquisition of the site.
Musk also claimed that the ADL was “falsely accusing it [X] and me of being antisemitic.”
He added that US advertising revenue is “still down [by] 60 per cent,” alleging that the reports are pressuring advertisers to stay away from the platform.
Musk came under fire this week for liking posts with the hashtag “BanTheADL”.
The ADL’s chief executive, Jonathan Greenblatt, said it is “profoundly disturbing” to see the former richest man in the world spend his weekend “engaging with a highly toxic, antisemitic campaign”.
The hashtag is also being promoted by other controversial figures, including “white nationalist Nick Fuentes, Christian nationalist Andrew Torba, conspiracy theorist Alex Jones and others”, Greenblatt added.
“We saw the campaign manifest in the real world when masked men marched in Florida on Saturday, brazenly waving flags adorned with swastikas and chanting ‘Ban the ADL’.”
The antisemitic campaign on social media stemmed from the ADL’s participation in a civil rights march marking the 60th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s famous “I have a dream” speech.
Criticisms of X and Musk from the ADL stem from statistics reported by numerous sources that suggest hate speech has rocketed since he bought what was then Twitter.
Research from LGBTQ+ advocacy group GLAAD in June found that the site is among one of the most dangerous platforms for marginalised groups.
Additionally, survey data collected from GLAAD, Amnesty International USA and The Human Rights Campaign found that 60 per cent of respondents reported an increase of abuse and hate speech since Musk took over.
The other respondents reported experiencing the same level of abuse as they did in the pre-Musk era. No one reported a decrease.
“To be clear, the real issue is neither ADL nor the threat of a frivolous lawsuit,” Greenblatt said. “This urgent matter is the safety of the Jewish people in the face of increasing, intensifying antisemitism.
“Musk is engaging with and elevating these antisemites at a time when ADL is tracking a surge of bomb threats and swatting attacks of synagogues and Jewish institutions, dramatic levels of antisemitic propaganda being littered throughout Jewish and non-Jewish residential communities and extremists marching openly through the streets in Nazi gear.”
In its audit of incidents in 2022, the ADL found that antisemitic-motivated hate crimes had increased by 36 per cent compared with 2021. It is the third time since 2018 that the year-end total has been the highest number ever recorded.
“This behaviour [from Elon Musk] is not just alarming nor reckless. It is flat-out dangerous and deeply irresponsible,” Greenblatt continued.
“We need responsible leaders to lead, to stop inflaming hatred and to step back from the brink before it’s too late.”
PinkNews has contacted X / Twitter for comment.
