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Across multiple cities, some anti-Israel activist groups have repurposed MLK Day programming into ideological teach-ins marketed to families with children as young as six. NYC Educators for Palestine hosted a “Palestine Teach-In.” NYC Public School Alliance President Karen Feldman called the event an “attempt to indoctrinate young people into hating Jews.”
Philadelphia Educators for Palestine, the Students for Justice in Palestine Coalition, Racial Justice Philly and the Asian Arts Initiative promoted “From Philly To Palestine: How Our Struggles Intertwine.” An event flyer falsely claimed that American federal aid to Israel is responsible for a lack of state funding for public schools.
These incidents reflect a broader trend in which Jewish participation is increasingly conditioned on political conformity unrelated to the purpose of public commemoration.
Tropes and Attacks Against Jews Reemerge Across Ideological Lines
Black-Jewish alliances were forged in response to shared explicit threats from organized extremist movements. Cooperation during the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s emerged in response to violent attacks, discrimination and inflammatory rhetoric against Black and Jewish Americans. White supremacists – especially the Ku Klux Klan – were the main instigators. Earlier alliances formed because of threats posed by Nazi and fascist movements in the U.S. and Europe.
A bomb planted by the KKK severely damaged the administrative offices of the Beth Israel Synagogue in 1967 in Jackson, Mississippi. The white supremacist group also detonated a bomb in front of home of the congregation’s rabbi, Dr. Perry Nussbaum – a civil rights activist. Following the synagogue bombing, the Greater Jackson Clergy Alliance – the first racially integrated association of Protestants, Catholics and Jews in MS – marched in the Walk of Penance to the synagogue to show support. White supremacists bombed and burned down dozens of churches – mainly Black churches – in the 1960s.
The same synagogue recently was set on fire by a 19-year-old white attacker. The arsonist intentionally targeted the city’s only synagogue – calling it a “synagogue of Satan.” This language has historically been used by extremists to justify attacks against Jews. In recent years, this vile message has been amplified by Louis Farrakhan’s Nation of Islam, Black Hebrew Israelite groups and the QAnon conspiracy theorists. Far-right Black American political commentator Candace Owens also has recently spread the phrase.
Local church leaders again offered support to the local Jewish community following the arson attack. NAACP President Derrick Johnson echoed the words of MLK: “We should be even more vigilant and accepting of one another and all that we bring to the table.” Synagogue President Zach Shemper defiantly stated: “We’re still here, and we’re not going anywhere.”
Dr. King’s Legacy Twisted to Fit Anti-Jewish Narratives
Some activists frame hateful conduct against Jews as legitimate political expression – influencing shifts in attitudes among younger Black Americans. These activists promote warped views of Jews and Israel. Compared to all Americans, Black Americans, ages 18 to 34, are more likely to say that acts of hate against Jews in the U.S. are a legitimate form of protest in response to the Gaza War (36% vs. 23%) and justify Hamas terrorism while condemning Israel’s actions (13% vs. 7%). Black Americans also are slightly more likely to support Christian nationalism (34% vs. 30%).
Dr. King’s public record stands in stark contrast to contemporary trends. Following looting of Jewish stores in NY by Blacks in 1964, Dr. King responded: “I solemnly pledge to do my utmost to uphold the fair name of the Jews. Not only because we need their friendship – but mainly because bigotry in any form is an affront to us all.
Speaking at the 1968 Rabbinical Assembly Convention – just 10 days before he was assassinated – Dr. King powerfully declared:
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