Biden administration marks Hanukkah with denunciation of antisemitism - CNN

CNN  — 

The Biden medication is marking the solemnisation of Hanukkah this twelvemonth by publically denouncing antisemitism successful the United States, with Attorney General Merrick Garland, a Jew, calling for Americans to unite against “bigotry successful immoderate of its forms.”

“Together, we indispensable basal up against the disturbing emergence successful antisemitism. And together, we indispensable basal up against bigotry successful immoderate of its forms. Our ideology depends connected it,” Garland said astatine the National Menorah lighting ceremonial connected Sunday night, the archetypal nighttime of Hanukkah. “As a descendant of those who fled persecution due to the fact that they were Jewish, it is particularly meaningful to beryllium present contiguous arsenic we airy this menorah successful our nation’s superior and nether the extortion of its laws.”

President Joe Biden volition big a Hanukkah reception astatine the White House connected Monday, during which helium volition present remarks and adhd the first-ever White House menorah to the White House collection, according to a White House official. During his remarks, Biden volition decry resurgent antisemitism astir the satellite and “forcefully accidental that each forms of hate, antisemitism, and unit tin person nary harmless harbor successful America,” the authoritative besides said.

This year’s vacation comes amid a emergence successful antisemitic unit and crime. In the past week, a 63-year-old man was assaulted successful New York successful what constabulary are calling an antisemitic attack; an idiosyncratic hacked into a North Carolina precocious school’s intercom system and allegedly made antisemitic remarks implicit the loudspeaker; and connected Saturday, constabulary responded to reports of antisemitic graffiti astatine a Maryland precocious school.

The administration’s connection besides comes amid outcry pursuing erstwhile President Donald Trump’s determination to host Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes and rapper Ye, formerly known arsenic Kanye West. The rapper has since made a bid of progressively much utmost antisemitic remarks, and astatine 1 point, praised Adolf Hitler.

While some Republican lawmakers condemned Trump’s gathering with the 2 men, galore were reluctant to blasted the ex-president, including House GOP person Kevin McCarthy.

“All of america astatine the Department of Justice volition ne'er halt moving to face and combat unit and different unlawful acts fueled by hate,” Garland said. “That is our ineligible obligation. But, present much than ever, each Americans person a motivation work to basal up against specified hate.”

Rabbi Levi Shemtov, enforcement vice president of American Friends of Lubavitch, said successful an interrogation with CNN up of the ceremony, “the connection of airy implicit acheronian and its triumph implicit darkness, I should say, could not beryllium much timely than successful what we are going done close present with a emergence successful antisemitism and radical becoming really precise cautious astir their Jewish individuality arsenic a result.”

Shemtov has led the National Menorah lighting ceremonial for much than 30 years.