A local Washington, D.C. lawmaker has apologized for posting a video on social media blaming the Rothschilds, a wealthy banking family who have often been at the center of anti-Semitic attacks, for climate change and an unexpected snow.
“Man, it just started snowing out of nowhere this morning, man. Y’all better pay attention to this climate control, man, this climate manipulation,” Trayon White Sr., who sits on the local city council, said in the video. “And D.C. keep talking about, ‘We a resilient city.’ And that’s a model based off the Rothschilds controlling the climate to create natural disasters they can pay for to own the cities, man. Be careful.”
White later apologized and deleted the video off of social media, but he has reportedly made similar comments tying the Jewish family to climate change in the past, according to The Huffington Post.
“I want to apologize to the Jewish Community and anyone I have offended,” he wrote in a social media post later. “The Jewish community have been allies with me in my journey to help people. I did not intend to be Anti-Semitic, and I see I should not have said that after learning from my colleagues.”
The director of the Anti-Defamation League in Washington, D.C. told TPM in a statement Monday that the group “welcome(s)” White’s apology.
“Councilman White Sr.’s offensive comments in a video on Facebook only served to perpetuate a classic and erroneous anti-Semitism conspiracy theory – that somehow Jews are clandestinely controlling world events,” D.C. Director Doron Ezickson said.
“At a time when anti-Semitic incidents have risen dramatically in the United States, it’s important that all of our elected officials fight all forms hate – including anti-Semitism,” Ezickson continued. “We welcome Councilman White Sr.’s apology and are glad to hear he is learning about the meaning behind his words. ADL stands ready to work with our country’s leaders, at all levels, to help them avoid rhetoric that can foster hate and bigotry.”
