Shoah Victims Call On Nigel Farage to Say Sorry Over Alleged Antisemitic Comments.
A collective of Shoah survivors has called for that Nigel Farage tell the truth and issue an apology for alleged anti-Jewish comments he is said to have made toward Jewish pupils during his youth.
The Reform UK leader has previously stated he never racially abused anyone with the aim to hurt, framing it may have been mere "schoolyard talk".
"Being Holocaust survivors, we understand the profound danger of words of hatred – because we have experienced firsthand where such words can lead," declared the survivors in a open letter.
"Let us be clear: lauding Hitler, jeering at gas chambers, or directing racial slurs is not banter. Not in a playground. Not anywhere."
A Direct Question
The document poses blunt questions to the political figure: "Did you say ‘Hitler was right’ and ‘gas them,’ while mimicking gas chambers? Did you subject your classmates to antisemitic abuse?"
Those Who Signed
The group of eleven survivors features individuals with harrowing personal stories from the Nazi genocide.
- Hedi Argent, who was bereaved of 27 members of her immediate and extended family.
- Simon Winston, who was held in a ghetto before fleeing in 1942 and spending the rest of the war as a fugitive.
- Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was imprisoned at Auschwitz-Birkenau and later incarcerated at Bergen-Belsen, where she was rescued.
Other signatories include Janine Webber, Edith Jayne, Helen Aronson, Ruth Barnett, John Fieldsend, Susan Pollack, Hanneke Dye and Agnes Kaposi.
Mounting Testimony
This intervention is a response to the rejection of similar allegations by more than several dozen alumni and teachers as "made-up twaddle" by a deputy leader.
After the story broke, more contemporaries have come forward. Twenty-eight ex-students and educators now claim they witnessed racist or antisemitic behaviour by him.
One well-known testimony comes from Peter Ettedgui, a Jewish-born award-winning director, who said that a young Farage would sidle up to him and utter the phrases "Hitler was correct" and "gas them", on occasion making a hiss to imitate the sound of poison gas.
Further Allegations
Additional alumni from ethnic minorities have likewise spoken publicly with stories of direct abuse.
- Cyrus Oshidar stated he was referred to as a "Paki" and has dismissed the notion that such actions were devoid of malice.
- Another individual with Asian roots described him as an "avowed bigot" who would use the phrase "Enoch Powell had a point" as a form of "ethnic harassment".
The Ultimate Question
The final appeal puts forth an ultimate challenge to Farage: "By denying saying those words, are you claiming that dozens of individuals are fabricating their stories? Should the allegations be true, now is the opportunity to take responsibility and apologise."
"Individuals who aspire to lead our country should under no circumstances sow discord by background or belief. Hatred of Jews must never become acceptable. This moment is about ethical duty. The choice is your own, Mr Farage."
