Days after the Super Bowl, I am still reeling from how a moment designed to confront antisemitism — a 30-second ad from Robert Kraft’s Blue Square Alliance — shined a light on the hate within some corners of our own community.

The ad spurred debate over its effectiveness — a worthy conversation. But what immediately struck me was how quickly and prominently anti-Black responses played a role. I realized once again that American Jews are not only experiencing hate but must confront it within our own ranks as well. As a community, we will not succeed in combating antisemitism if we allow anti-blackness to live within our movements.

The ad, called “Sticky Note,” featured a non-Jewish Black child showing kindness to a Jewish child who was the victim of antisemitic bullying.

It spurred legitimate criticism about how to best fight antisemitism. But layered throughout was casual racism cloaked in the language of Jewish advocacy — even glee in an opportunity to engage in anti-Blackness under the guise of combating antisemitism.

Online, one person dedicated time to remaking the ad with AI so the bullies were darker-skinned and then had the Jewish child attack them.

Another person wrote that the bullies in the ad needed to be recast, because “most of our enemies aren’t white.”

Some exotified the Black child and leered at his natural hair, his height, his walk and his apparent “coolness.” People wrongfully claimed that the scenario was entirely unrealistic because Black people — at the individual or the organizational level — never stand against antisemitism.

Even more........

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