A House Judiciary Committee hearing regarding antisemitism on college campuses on Wednesday morning was interrupted by pro-Hamas protestors who shouted down the committee. The pro-Hamas crowd repeatedly shouted over the Chair of the committee,  Congressman Jim Jordan (R-OH), and continued to heckle and shout over anyone trying to speak, including several of the witnesses. Some of the protestors were wearing headbands with "Gaza" on them or had their mouths taped shut with the same message written on them as well.  

The interruptions continued into the hearing. When the third witness, Cornell University student Amanda Silberstein, was interrupted during her introduction by a protester yelling, "free Palestine!" The heckler was also quickly removed. 

A fourth witness, Kenneth Marcus, founder and chairman of the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, was interrupted by multiple protesters who held up a Palestinian flag. The demonstrators began moving out of the room before they could be removed.

Pro-Hamas protesters interrupt the congressional hearing on antisemitism on college campuses pic.twitter.com/oi4TqLexII

— YAF (@yaf) November 8, 2023

Throughout the hearing, several pro-Hamas demonstrators interrupted committee members and witnesses with shouts of "Free Palestine!" or complaints about the censure of Congresswoman Rashida Tliab (D-MI) and silencing others about their criticism of Israel's attacks on Hamas after the October 7th terrorist attack and invasion. Tlaib has been a very vocal and harsh opponent of Israel and America's support of them for years and has used her platform, along with her anti-Israel far-left squad members, to spread her hatred and antisemitic remarks. 

Tlaib has been under fire for her public remarks since the Hamas terror attacks against Israel on October 7. Following the horrific attacks, Tlaib was eerily quiet until pressed for a response. Finally, she issued a statement that essentially glossed over the attacks and went straight to decrying "occupation" and an "apartheid system." 

Since then, Tlaib has fanned the flames of controversy between maintaining the display of a Palestinian flag outside her office and steadfastly avoiding pointed questions regarding the atrocities perpetrated by Hamas. 

Tlaib narrowly avoided being censured last Wednesday on a vote that failed 222-186. However, in a relatively swift reversal, her fellow congressmembers voted in favor of censuring her Tuesday night. 

The vote was 234 in favor of the censure, with 188 opposing it and four members voting "present."

The irony of the  House Judiciary Committee hearing on antisemitism on college campuses getting interrupted by antisemitic pro-Hamas demonstrators is not lost on us here at RedState. And it furthers the proof and the narrative that there is not just a rise in antisemitism in this country; it is being embraced by the left. The fact that only 22 Democratic members of the House voted to censure Tlaib gives proof that the left is much more accepting of hatred. 

The left touts itself as the party and ideology of inclusivity, tolerance, and love for all (except for conservatives), so how could one claim otherwise? There are no groups on the right that openly espouse antisemitic ideologies and hatred. The left loves to say that we are nazis or cold-hearted racists, but the left refuses to accept that Nazism and fascism are leftist ideologies. They both desire big government control. limited freedoms, high regulations, high taxes, etc, those are not conservative principles at all. 

When all the social justice groups of the left all coming out for Hamas, Palestine, and the destruction of the Jewish State of Israel, they have lost the moral high ground that you claim to have controlled. On college campuses all over the country, leftist groups are unabashedly calling for the denouncement of Israel and proudly supporting the Hamas attacks on Israel. 

This is a sad reality that we are living in now in America. With the blatant and rabid hatred for Israel and those who support them, the Jewish community is being hit hard with this hate. Some say that this level of antisemitism hasn't shown itself like this since Nazi Germany. The criticism of Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza has been the cover for their hatred of Jewish people, and it is spreading like wildfire. The left loves to say that hate speech is violence and that words have consequences, yet they aren't following their beliefs. Demonstrations and protests all over the country, especially on college campuses, have sent the Jewish community into hiding. At the very least, Jewish people across the country are feeling afraid to do or say anything lest they get attacked. Jewish Americans in California, for example, are buying guns in record numbers, some even buying them for the first time. The state is reporting a 450 percent increase in gun sales since last year. 

A Jewish gentleman named Paul Kessler was killed at a demonstration in Southern California after being struck in the face with a megaphone by a pro-Hamas terrorist sympathizer, which caused him to fall backward and crack his skull on the pavement. He was killed simply for being a Jewish man waving an Israeli flag. 

The Ventura County Sheriff's Department is investigating, and issued the following information Monday evening (emphasis mine):

A 69-year-old man, identified as Paul Kessler, died as a result of injuries sustained during an altercation at a Pro-Israeli / Pro-Palestinian event, both of which were occurring simultaneously at the intersection of Westlake Blvd. and Thousand Oaks Blvd.  The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the incident and has not ruled out the possibility of a hate crime.   
 
On November 5, 2023, at approximately 3:20 PM, multiple citizens called the Ventura County Sheriff’s Communication Center to report a battery had occurred at the intersection of Westlake Boulevard and Thousand Oaks Boulevard in the City of Thousand Oaks. The intersection was the location of a Pro-Israeli / Pro-Palestinian demonstration.
 
Upon arrival, responding deputies located Kessler, who was suffering from a head injury.  Witness accounts indicated that Kessler was involved in a physical altercation with counter-protestor(s).  During the altercation, Kessler fell backwards and struck his head on the ground. Kessler was transported to an area hospital for advanced medical treatment. On November 6, 2023, Kessler succumbed to his injuries.
 
An autopsy was performed on November 6^th and the Ventura County Medical Examiner’s Office determined the cause of death to be blunt force head injury and the manner of death homicide.

It is time for the left to own up to their hateful rhetoric and take responsibility for the subsequent actions taken by those who support and believe in their rhetoric. This has come to an end, and it is up to the left to come to their senses.