The National Jewish Assembly in Great Britain welcomes the decision by the second-largest auto insurer in the US, Geico, to cancel a company event with pro-Palestinian activist Linda Sarsour.
The activist from New York has been accused of antisemitism and after calls from Jewish groups to cancel the event, Geico apologised to its employees and customers for its initial plan to invite her.
Sarsour is an activist from New York who supports the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. She has made a number of controversial statements including comparing Zionism to “white supremacy in America”.
In 2019 Sarsour said that progressive Zionists have no place in the larger progressive movement and that Israel supporters cannot be feminists.
In 2012, she tweeted “Nothing is creepier than Zionism,” and has spoken in favour of Palestinian terrorist Rasmea Odeh.
Far-left groups including Jewish Voice for Peace, and liberal politicians, support Linda Sarsour for her community and progressive activism and for rallying behind Muslim causes and the political wing of Black Lives Matter.
Sarsour was one of the leaders of the massive Women’s March movement after Donald Trump’s presidential election win in 2016, until the group’s leadership fell apart amid accusations of antisemitism by other members. She was recognized by former US president Barack Obama, whose White House named her a “champion of change.”
The National Jewish Assembly believes that no company or organisation should tolerate any form of racism, hatred or incitement and Geico insurance has done the right thing, by admitting it made a mistake in asking Sarsour to speak and subsequently withdrawing the invitation.
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