As Jewish leaders dedicated to advancing civil rights and public health, we are alarmed by the sharp rise of antisemitism in the criticism of COVID-19 mitigation measures. Whether in public hearings, on social media or in the streets, we have heard far too many vaccine and mask opponents equate the policies keeping our communities safe to Nazi Germany. Rejecting public health practices is dangerous; weaponizing the Holocaust to attack these policies is both historically inaccurate and beyond unconscionable. The genocide of over 11 million people is incomparable to the measures necessary to combat a global pandemic.
First, any attempt to compare COVID precautions to the Holocaust is a false equivalency. Mask mandates and proof of vaccination are not the Nuremberg Race Laws, which began the legal dehumanization of the Jewish population. In fact, Hitler and the Nazis withheld vaccination from Jews and others to rid the world of “undesirable” and “inferior” people. The policies…
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