Boston socialist city councilor slammed for antisemitic tweet about Zionists shaking people down

A Boston city councilor was slammed on social media and across the country Thursday for her tweet that used an anti-Semitic trope. She later admitted after the backlash that she "should’ve known better."

First-term Democratic Socialist of America (DSA) Councilor Kendra Lara wrote in the tweet Thursday morning, "ya’ll are letting the Zionists SHAKE YOU DOWN. phew!" It is an antisemitic stereotype to claim that Jews wield disproportionate influence over government, courts, media and public spheres.

Lara has a history of antisemitic and anti-Israel comments in her Twitter.

Agawam City Councilor Tom Hendrickson, "liked" Lara’s antisemitic post. Hendrickson lists in his Twitter bio that he is also the campaign manager for Democratic State Rep. Jake Oliveira. Hendrickson has since limited access to his Twitter account. Oliveira told Masslive that he "absolutely condemn[ed]" antisemitism and antisemitic language.

Despite massive backlash, the tweet was up for more than 7 hours. Lara later tweeted, "It was made clear to me, that the use of the phrase ‘shake them down’ reinforces Anti-Semitic tropes about Jewish people."

She added, "Although that was not my intention, the impact — especially in a moment when we’re seeing alarming rates of violence against Jewish people — is the same and I should’ve known better."

While attempting to apologize for the remark, Lara, in her thread doubled down on her antisemitic tropes adding, "conflating anti-Zionism with antisemitism will ultimately prevent us from being in true solidarity with both Jewish people and Palestinians."

She wrote in another Twitter post, "I was raised by two Jewish mentors who taught me to be anti-Zionist and Pro-Palestine at a very young age (15/16) so the idea that anti-Zionism is inherently anti-Semitic is incredibly reductionist to me so I didn’t even consider how my word choice could inadvertently be reinforcing."

Even after her "apology" Lara's Jew-hating comments continued. A parody account on Twitter called Rabbi Linda Goldstein, Chief Rabbi of Gaza messaged the councilor to "thank her" for her support.

Lara replied, "Zionism really does have a stronghold on our communities."

Many in the Jewish community, including the Anti-Defamation League’s Robert Trestan, called out Lara for "a classic antisemitic trope targeting Jews."

Trestan told the Boston Herald, "It comes at a time when the Jewish community in Boston is feeling vulnerable and under attack."

Lara’s tweet was in response to the "Mapping Project" interactive map posted online, which doxxed local Jewish organizations, schools and politicians supportive of Israel.

The map was shared by the Boston chapter of the antisemitic Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movment. DSA endorsed the antisemitic movement in 2017. Since then, on applications for candidate endorsements for elections, DSA chapters across the country ask candidates if they support the Jew-hating movement.

Trestan told the Herald, "It’s pretty shocking to have a Boston city councilor disseminating an anti-Semitic trope. The insinuation that there’s some sort of nefarious Jewish influence in a Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision is anti-Semitic."

Lara originally wrote the tweet in response to a federal appeals court earlier this week upholding an Arkansas law requiring state contractors to pledge not to boycott Israel. According to the Associated Press, the 8th Circuit US Court of Appeals ruled that the restriction is not an unconstitutional violation of free speech.

The Arkansas Times originally sued to block the law. The American Civil Liberties Union, representing the outlet, announced that it plans to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court.

Lara also tweeted, "I maintain my disappointment with the eighth circuit courts ruling and believe that conflating anti-Zionism with antisemitism will ultimately prevent us from being in true solidarity with both Jewish people and Palestinians."

According to an April report from the ADL, anti-Semitic incidents in Massachusetts reached an all-time high in 2021, increasing 48 percent from 2020.Additionally, the increase of antisemitic incidents in New England outpaced that of the rest of the country in 2021. New England experienced a 42 percent increase while the US experienced a 34 percent increase.