Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on August 2, 2020

Fort Bend County Commissioners Court approved a COVID-19 Anti-Hate Resolution in a narrow 3-2 vote over objections from two Republican commissioners. This resolution condemns hate but it creates division. It does not show unity, Commissioner Vincent Morales said during a zoom meeting Tuesday, July 28.

Fort Bend County Commissioners Court approved a COVID-19 Anti-Hate Resolution in a narrow 3-2 vote over objections from two Republican commissioners. This resolution condemns hate but it creates division. It

Photo: Courtesy Fort Bend County

Fort Bend County Commissioners Court approved a COVID-19 Anti-Hate Resolution in a narrow 3-2 vote over objections from two Republican commissioners. This resolution condemns hate but it creates division. It does not show unity, Commissioner Vincent Morales said during a zoom meeting Tuesday, July 28.

Fort Bend County Commissioners Court approved a COVID-19 Anti-Hate Resolution in a narrow 3-2 vote over objections from two Republican commissioners. This resolution condemns hate but it creates division. It

Fort Bend Countys COVID-19 Anti-Hate Resolution wins approval

A resolution denouncing bigotry, antisemitism and hate speech espoused by extremists who target Chinese Americans on claims China caused the COVID-19 pandemic and conspiracy theorists who say Jews are using COVID-19 to make money drew both praise and harsh criticism from the public during Tuesdays Fort Bend County Commissioners Court meeting.

During public comments, Sugar Land resident Ian Scharfman was among those who came to voice support for the measure.

Sadly, this pandemic has given rise to hate directed at our neighbors, such as hateful ethnic slurs and other egregious actions directed at Asians and the proliferation of conspiracy theories tied to this pandemic that are founded in antisemitic tropes, to name a few examples, Scharfman said and urged commissioners to approve the measure. We must stand together to condemn such hate, bigotry, racism and antisemitism in all its forms.

The resolution put forward by County Judge KP George, denounces antisemitism, anti-Asian bigotry, racism and all hateful speech, violent action and the spread of misinformation related to COVID-19 that casts blame, promotes racism or discrimination or harms Fort Bend County Asian Pacific, Black, Latinx, Jewish, immigrant or other ethnic and religious communities.

The measure also drew criticism from a number of residents such as Christine Longwood, who objected to the resolution because it wasnt inclusive of every ethnic group.

I noticed on the resolution that nowhere does it have Caucasians or white listed, Longwood said. Because a particular demographic is excluded from the resolution, it seems like a pretty racist document to me.

The resolution states the Jewish community has been the target of blame, hate, antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories that claim they profit from COVID-19 and goes on to condemn terms like Chinese Virus or Kung Flu virus as language that encourages hate crimes and against Asians and Pacific Islander individuals and spreads misinformation.

Related: Fort Bend County Commissioners voice concerns about COVID-19 mask order

Deborah Chen from OCA Greater Houston, a national civil rights organization that advocates for Asian Pacific Americans, said many Asian American residents contacted her organization for support because they were afraid to go to the grocery store or venture out in the community for fear they would become targets of hate speech or violence.

The Midland incident is where a family was shopping at Sams Club and was stabbed and thats generated a lot of fear among many members of the Asians community, she said, referring to reports that an Asian family became victims to an alleged hate crime incident while shopping earlier this year.

According to police officials, Jose Gomez, 19, allegedly stabbed three family members including two children under the age of 10 and later reportedly told officers he tried to kill the family because he believed they were infecting people with coronavirus because they were Chinese.

Unfortunately, whether its antisemitic tropes that rely on conspiracy theories that blame Jews for (COVID-19) or geography that has been the source of anti-Asian hate and violence, particularly what happened in Midland a few months ago, extremists and other people have stoked fear for their own agendas, Anti Defamation League Southwest Regional Director Mark Toubin said. We do know that public officials can make people feel more secure by publicly and officially stating that hate and this pandemic should not be related and thats what this resolutions does.

The resolution also encourages people to report any antisemitic, discriminatory or racist incidents to the proper authorities for investigation, which drew criticism from Simonton resident Andrew Perry who said although he didnt condone racism he opposed the resolution because it limited his constitutional rights.

Youre trying to limit our freedom of speech, Perry told the court. You make words prosecutable or investigable. This is a slippery slope. Where does it end?

During court discussions, the resolution drew criticism from Commissioner Andy Meyers who also voiced concerns related to free speech.

There are problems with potential first amendment questions. There are problems with potential HIPPA violations, he said. But I think most importantly, there are problems with potential violations of state and federal law in relation to how this resolution is worded to establish county policy.

On HoustonChronicle.com: China poisoned our people, says campaign ad from Houston candidate Kathaleen Wall

Commissioner Vincent Morales also voiced opposition to the resolution.

This resolution condemns hate but it creates division. It does not show unity. I could see us coming together supporting a resolution that is not so divisive, Morales said, without pointing to any specific part of the resolution as divisive.

When contacted later for clarification, Morales issued a statement via email:

Fort Bend is internationally known as a diverse county, and I believe were a fine example of how so many different cultures, people, and beliefs can successfully thrive and peacefully coexist. The reason that we continue to grow so quickly is because we live up to that reputation. This Commissioners Court has stood time and again for equality, justice, and civility, and despite our different backgrounds and cultures weve worked hard together to keep our community thriving, Morales wrote.

My major concerns were the policy changes, and especially after Judge Georges recent media appearances about unkind and racist social media comments against him the vague language about citizens being asked to report on their fellow citizens speech was not the direction I expected him to go. Normally, our court takes policy decisions through a more deliberative approach. We were initially brought the first Anti-Defamation League Resolution and I had been working for days on being ready to vote in favor of it, to condemn hate and promote the peaceful unity of our community.

Ive still not learned why the ADL resolution was changed and picked apart to its final extent. As has been the case before with Judge George, I (and Commissioner Meyers) find ourselves occasionally on the outside looking in when it comes to input or discussion. As an elected member of the court, its regretful when I have been deprived of any deliberative or creative process, Morales wrote. I liked the initial resolution and was ready to support much of the language in even the second version if there had been any discussion at all from the other members. But they stayed silent, so my only choice was an up or down vote. I honestly believe that if this was an inclusive court that relished a diversity of perspectives, we would have taken the time to proofread these documents against embarrassing errors, involve more deliberation from all our members, and solicit at least some input from the departments impacted by the new policies. These are basic steps towards unanimous support and resolutions that we all can agree upon, and use to show love to all our neighbors as ourselves.

The resolution was approved 3-2 vote with Meyers and Morales voting against the measure at a Fort Bend County Commissioners Court meeting held Tuesday, July 28.

knix@hcnonline.com

More here:
Fort Bend Countys COVID-19 Anti-Hate Resolution wins approval - Chron.com

Category: Anti-Defamation League
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