New York Jewish Elected Officials on Elon Musk

On January 20th, we saw Elon Musk give what appeared to be two Nazi salutes - otherwise known as a “Sieg Heil” or a “Roman salute” - at an official presidential event, from a podium that bore the presidential seal. As Jewish elected officials committed to combating antisemitism in New York, we unequivocally condemn this action and the lack of apology. Given that Elon Musk has repeatedly pushed the antisemitic “Great Replacement” theory and endorsed the Nazi-supporting AfD party in Germany, it is not hard to imagine that he knew exactly what he was doing.

Among many other sweeping executive actions taken on day one, President Trump pardoned hundreds of January 6th rioters, including one who notoriously wore a “Camp Auschwitz” shirt to the Capitol insurrection. Thousands of people will be materially harmed by the administration’s sweeping actions on day one, and we stand in solidarity with those New Yorkers.
It should not be hard to call any of this out. Any organization or leader that purports to combat hate against Jews and other minority groups must do so loudly and clearly. There is no room for ambiguity when it comes to Nazi symbology. The time is now to protect ourselves and our neighbors, not to normalize hate.
 

Signed,
NYC Comptroller Brad Lander
Senator Michelle Hinchey
Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal
Senator Liz Krueger
Senator Shelley Mayer
Assemblymember Harvey Epstein
Assemblymember Anna Kelles
Assemblymember Micah Lasher
Assemblymember Dana Levenberg
Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal
New York City Councilmember Lincoln Restler