By Rabbi Michael Leo Samuel
CHULA VISTA, California — Nittai the Arbelite said: Keep your distance from a bad neighbor; don’t socialize with scoundrels. Mishnah—Avoth 1:7
Our parents often taught us, “A person is judged by the company he keeps.” Jewish tradition reaffirms this message, for people then to gravitate to others who share common values. How many times we have seen our youngsters hanging out with kids who suffer from anti-social tendencies, e.g., smoking, stealing, gangs, and so on?
This simple life lesson is not limited to children. It applies no less to adults—and it especially applies to leaders. When leaders associate themselves with people who are known racists, one must seriously reevaluate their political leaders’ ethical standards.
If the KKK endorsed Mitt Romney on his website, I would have very serious problems with Mitt Romney’s ethical values. I would ask myself, “What kind of man would associate with such low-lives?” This would be a legitimate question for any person of good conscience to ask themselves or their friends.
President Barak Obama has had the Black Panthers (NBPP) on his re-elect Obama wesbsite; the NBPP a group that is every bit as racist as the KKK. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this newly re-constituted group, here is a short synopsis of what ADL has to say about the Black Panthers’ leader, Malik Zulu Shabazz, and his personal attitudes about Jews and non-African American peoples:
- Malik Zulu Shabazz, the anti-Semitic and racist leader of the New Black Panther Party (NBPP), has sought to recast himself as a serious civil rights leader in recent years by cloaking his bigotry and intolerance in religious and civil rights principles and inserting himself in high profile, racially charged issues around the country.
- Shabazz’s efforts have been supported, at times, by prominent members of the African-American community, which has provided him with a measure of status as a legitimate leader. This status is also reinforced by media accounts, which increasingly ignore his divisive record.
- Shabazz’s attempts to gain acceptance and respectability are tainted, however, by his long record of racism and anti-Semitism, which he continues to embrace. That record includes promoting conspiracy theories about Jewish foreknowledge of the September 11 terrorist attacks and canards that Jews control the media and were “significantly and substantially” involved in the transatlantic slave trade. [1]
The mere fact that the Black Panthers Logo and endorsement appears on Obama’s 2008 and 2012 website is disturbing enough. Over the last few weeks, the Obama campaign decided to remove the endorsement because of “political reasons.” Voter intimidation in Philadelphia occurred and a legal suit was made against the NBPP, which U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder together with Barak Obama had dismissed. [2]
Given the anti-Semitic and anti-Zionist rhetoric we have heard from the NBPP and their friendship and the President’s willingness to list them as one of his supporters, we have another good reason to feel suspicious of President Obama.
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Notes:
[1] http://www.adl.org/learn/ext_us/malik_zulu_shabazz/default.asp?LEARN_Cat=Extremism&LEARN_SubCat=Extremism_in_America&xpicked=2&item=Shabazz
[2] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qX4dcvIYk9A&feature=related
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Rabbi Samuel is spiritual leader of Temple Beth Shalom in Chula Vista. He may be contacted at michael.samuel@sdjewishworld.com