Video: Iowa News Now/YouTube
In a speech in Iowa on July 4 about the passage of his devastating tax and spend bill, convicted felon, sexual abuser and President Trump used the term “shylock,” a well-known antisemitic slur, to refer to bankers. Trump ha a long history of making antisemitic statements to the extent that a whole freestanding Wikipedia page exists about the topic.
Trump has used claims that universities are bastions of antisemitism as a cudgel to attack institutions of higher learning throughout the country and attempt to defund them, while thinking nothing of using an anti-semitic slur in a public talk.
After Jewish groups slammed him for using the term, Trump claimed he was unaware the term was a slur, telling reporters “I’ve never heard it that way. To me, Shylock is somebody that’s a money lender at high rates. I’ve never heard it that way, you view it differently than me. I’ve never heard that.”
Shylock is a villain in Shakespeare’s play “The Merchant of Venice,” a greedy and vengeful Jewish money lender who is ultimately defeated and forced to convert to Christianity. The term has long been used as a pejorative name for bankers and loan sharks, particularly of the Jewish faith.
The Anti-Defamation League, which fights the defamation of Jewish people and the use of crude Jewish stereotypes, wrote on Twitter,
“The term ‘Shylock’ evokes a centuries-old antisemitic trope about Jews and greed that is extremely offensive and dangerous. President Trump’s use of the term is very troubling and irresponsible. It underscores how lies and conspiracies about Jews remain deeply entrenched in our country. Words from our leaders matter and we expect more from the President of the United States.
House Rep. Jerry Nadler made the following statement about Trump’s use of the slur on his social media account:
“The term ‘Shylock’ is one of the most recognizable antisemitic slurs in the English language. It’s a centuries-old trope that has fueled discrimination, hatred, and violence against Jews for generations. I condemn Donald Trump’s dangerous use of this blatantly antisemitic slur and his long history of trafficking in antisemitic tropes. American Jews deserve leaders who will fight antisemitism in all its forms, not ones who fuel it from the behind the Presidential seal, elevate antisemites to some of the highest positions of power, and exploit the horrific rise in antisemitism to suppress constitutionality-protected free speech. I have often said that if Donald Trump was serious about fighting antisemitism, he could start with the antisemites in his own administration. Today’s speech shows that antisemitism in the Trump Administration is the rule not the exception, and emanates from the very top. If Donald Trump were serious about fighting antisemitism, he could start with himself.”