The party tweeted a comparison between COVID-19 vaccine passports and badges that Jewish people had to wear in Nazi Germany.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A social media post from a Kentucky political party sparked national debate and outrage.
The Libertarian Party of Kentucky tweeted a comparison between COVID-19 vaccine passports and badges that Jewish people were required to wear in Nazi Germany.
“Will the vaccination records be yellow, star-shaped and sewn onto our clothing,” read the tweet.
The tweet posted on Monday has more than 9,000 replies – including comments from the Auschwitz Memorial and Jewish actor Seth Rogen.
“The instrumentalization of the tragedy of Jews who suffered, humiliated, marked with a yellow star and eventually isolated in ghettos and murdered during the Holocaust in a debate about vaccines that save lives is disrespectful to victims and a sad symptom of moral decline . “The Auschwitz Memorial replied.
The instrumentalization of the tragedy of Jews who suffered, humiliated, marked with a yellow star and ultimately isolated in ghettos and murdered during the Holocaust in a debate about vaccines that save lives is disrespectful to the victims and a sad symptom of moral decline .
– Auschwitz Memorial (@AuschwitzMuseum) March 31, 2021
Matthew Goldberg, director of community relations for the Jewish Federation of Louisville, said he was shocked and outraged by the tweet.
“Vaccines are supposed to save lives and wearing the yellow stars should disparage and humiliate. These comparisons clearly shouldn’t be made,” Goldberg said.
Goldberg said any reference to the Holocaust is inappropriate unless it is about a conversation about another genocide.
“We have Holocaust survivors in our community here in Louisville, here in the state of Kentucky who are still alive today. They shouldn’t be witnessing such comments,” Goldberg said.
On Wednesday, the Libertarian Party of Kentucky posted a thread on its Twitter page saying it had done the comparison backwards and admitted that it was insensitive, especially amid Passover.
The other day we wrote a tweet that went viral and got a lot of attention. For the past 48 hours our party has been smeared as anti-Semitic.
Was it the most polished tweet? No, we even got the comparison backwards. However, a conversation began that had to be held. 1/5
– Libertarian Party of Kentucky (@lpky) March 31, 2021
Randall Daniel, chairman of the Libertarian Party of Kentucky, said the party tried to explain that vaccination records are a violation of human freedom.
“More often than not, when the government comes up with a policy it thinks is good, it can have permanent consequences,” Daniel said.
The party tweeted that the Holocaust was evil and “we want to prevent such atrocities” by speaking out against tyranny.
“The resemblance is in the nature of an authoritarian government that dictates control over its population,” Daniel said. “And while the parallel was poorly articulated … and it is commonly referred to as a fallacy, there is a slippery slope in many of the policies that the government issues.”
Both the Louisville Jewish Federation and the Libertarian Party of Kentucky said they were ready to meet and have a conversation.
The Louisville Jewish Federation invites people to its annual April 8th commemoration of the Holocaust.
This year’s virtual memorial to Yom HaShoah will feature a film made by Ann and Sandor Klein’s grandchildren – the former Holocaust survivor who became the inspiration for a state law mandating Holocaust education in Kentucky. More information can be found here.
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