New York State Bar Association Decries Hate Speech Supporting Repugnant Attacks
10.11.2023
The NYSBA Task Force on Combating Antisemitism and Anti-Asian Hate is saddened and dismayed by what can only be termed hate speech in our own backyard in New York City and in certain colleges and universities on the part of pro-Hamas demonstrators. These individuals have held up swastikas and praised the massacre of innocent civilians in Israel. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul called these demonstrations “abhorrent” and “morally repugnant.” Mayor Eric Adams told the protesters: “Do not use our streets to spread your hate.”
NYSBA has correctly denounced the brutal murders of Israelis in their homes and communities as violative of international law. But they are more than that. They are atrocities reminiscent of the worst crimes committed by ISIS: slaughtering babies and the elderly in their homes. As President Biden said yesterday, these unprovoked terrorist attacks were “pure, unadulterated evil.” In the wake of the horrific attacks on Israel perpetrated against innocent civilian men, women, and children, we urge New Yorkers to stand against the hate speech supporting these repugnant attacks.