This week, a committee of the Utah House of Representatives unanimously forwarded a measure by Millcreek Democratic Rep. Doug Owens that aims to address what some have called ‘a pandemic of hate.’
House Concurrent Resolution 15 “condemns antisemitic acts and statements as hateful expressions of intolerance that are contradictory to the values that define the people of the state of Utah.”
The measure is in part a response to some recent high profile incidents in Utah. In January, the co-founder of a Utah software company sent an antisemitic email to a number of Utah political and business leaders advancing a baseless conspiracy that COVID-19 vaccines were part of a plot to “euthanize the American People.”
This week, the Park City School District reported that in recent weeks graffiti of swastikas and racist language had been found at two of its schools, including in the classroom of a Jewish teacher. Over the past year there have also been bomb threats and vandalism targeting Utah synagogues.
Today on “In the Hive,” we look at antisemitism in Utah and around the country and we examine the ways in which online conspiracy theories are resulting in real world incidents of hate.
Guests:
Former Utah Rep. Patrice Arent
Seth Brysk,central pacific regional director for the Anti-Defamation League
Rabbi David Levinsky of Park City’s Temple Har Shalom
Rabbi Samuel Spector of Congregation Kol Ami in Salt Lake City
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