Actor David Schwimmer called out celebrities for not standing up to hate speech and antisemitism at the Anti-Defamation League’s “Never Is Now” conference last week.
“Plenty of people I respect, even some of my heroes in entertainment, music and sports, have chosen to keep a low profile and sit this one out, including some whose careers have been made by leaning into their Jewish identity, and others who have won acclaim for playing Jews on screen,” Schwimmer said at the New York conference.
The “Friends” star continued, “Some of them are doing a lot behind the scenes, privately and in their own way, but so many have chosen not to say anything publicly at all.”
“I wish you would stand up. I wish you would speak out because your voice would be so meaningful to your fans who love you, to your community members who need you, to folks who can use just a little solidarity right now,” Schwimmer said, addressing the many well-known Hollywood actors who have stayed silent since October 7.
He concluded, “No one’s asking you to solve the conflict of the Middle East. Just say that you stand with your Jewish friends, colleagues, and neighbours against hatred and what’s happening on our college campuses and in our schools and to Jewish-owned businesses is totally unacceptable.”
Addressing campus antisemtism
In April of last year, Schwimmer called out the rise of antisemitism on college campuses in an Instagram post to his over 8 million followers, as previously reported in The Jerusalem Post.
Schwimmer described the current climate for Jewish students as fraught with “pervasive harassment, intimidation, segregation, hate speech, threats, and acts of real violence.” He stated that Jewish students are experiencing “the worst attacks on their rights, dignity, and safety in my lifetime.”
He also acknowledged the unfairness of Jewish hate, “If this were any other minority group, the response would have been immediate outrage and action,”
