Seinfeld compares ‘Free Palestine’ movement to Ku Klux Klan, says both antisemites
Jewish comedian, a vocal supporter of Israel and critic of pro-Palestinian activists, appears at Duke University event hosting former hostage Omer Shem Tov
Jerry Seinfeld compared the far-right Ku Klux Klan hate group to the “Free Palestine” movement at an event on Tuesday, saying they both “don’t like Jews.”
Speaking at Duke University alongside a released Israeli hostage, the Jewish actor and comedian argued that the slogan “Free Palestine” serves as cover for antisemites.
Seinfeld made an unannounced appearance at the event, where he was featured alongside Omer Shem Tov, an Israeli taken captive by Hamas-led terrorists during their invasion of southern Israel on October 7, 2023. He was released during a ceasefire agreement earlier this year.
“Free Palestine, to me, is just — you’re afraid to say you don’t like Jews. Just say you don’t like Jews,” Seinfeld quipped.
“By saying Free Palestine, you’re not admitting what you really think,” he went on. “Actually, compared to the Ku Klux Klan, I’m actually thinking the Klan is actually a little better here because they come right out and say, ‘We don’t like Blacks, we don’t like Jews.’ OK, that’s honest.”
His comment drew chuckles from the audience.
The event was organized by Duke’s Chabad center, along with the Provost’s Initiative on the Middle East, university centers, and Jewish student groups, university newspaper The Chronicle said in a Wednesday report.
He has also been a vocal critic of pro-Palestinian activism, which he has previously tied to antisemitic attitudes. During a tour in Australia last year, he was heckled during a performance in Sydney by a protester who accused him of being a “genocide supporter.”
“We have a genius, ladies and gentlemen,” Seinfeld said to laughter. “He’s solved the Middle East. He’s solved it! It’s the Jewish comedians, that’s who we have to get.”
At another event in Melbourne days afterward, he was again heckled.
“I think you need to go back and tell whoever’s running your organization: ‘We just gave more money to a Jew,’” Seinfeld told the protester, eliciting waves of laughter from the crowd. “That cannot be a good plan for you.”
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