Israel-Hamas war roils Somerville mayoral race
A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr.
Enter Email
Sign Up
Alain Jehlen
Advertisement
Somerville
Outrage against Israel makes Jews a target
Shira Schoenberg is right but too lenient in her op-ed 'Could Somerville mayoral hopeful Willie Burnley fairly represent Zionist constituents?' Willie Burnley Jr. can't represent Somerville Zionists. He can't represent Jews; and in being bad for Jews, he's bad for Americans.
Oct. 7, 2023, gave license to target Jews in ways that, if aimed at other minorities, would spark outrage. Once such actions are normalized against Jews, they become normalized against any group the mob targets.
Jew hate was primed to erupt.
Advertisement
No other minority faces such mob punishment. Not the Chinese for Communist Party terror against Tibetans, Uyghurs, or Hong Kong; Arabs for horrors in Iraq or Syria; or Muslims for jihadist massacres in Africa. Only Jews.
In doing so, radicals target all Americans who hold to the proposition that all are created equal and, out of many, one. In siding with them, Burnley and others don't just endanger Jews; they also threaten those principles and Americans who live by them.
Steve Spear
Brookline
Still waiting to hear a certain condemnation from Burnley
Shira Schoenberg's otherwise excellent op-ed about Willie Burnley Jr.'s campaign for mayor of Somerville noted that Burnley has been compared with New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. The comparison is faulty and unfair. Mamdani
Burnley has failed to make any such statements, to my knowledge. In fact, on Aug. 7, I saw him at a 'Somerville for Palestine' rally and press conference in front of City Hall, where I politely asked him, 'How would you characterize what Hamas did on Oct. 7, 2023?' He looked at me and then, instead of answering, simply walked away.
Ken Brociner
Somerville
Divestment would make Somerville more welcoming, not less
As a Jewish resident of Massachusetts who has donated to Zohran Mamdani and canvassed for Willie Burnley Jr., I felt misrepresented when I read the phrase 'Both are raising fears among many Jewish, Zionist constituents' in Shira Schoenberg's Aug. 11 op-ed. This narrative implies that Jewish and Zionist are two identities that overlap, which couldn't be further from the truth and dangerously casts the Jewish community as universally supportive of Israel's actions.
Advertisement
Mamdani, rather than being a bogeyman in the Jewish community, is the leading candidate within it with a
To hold that it is antisemitic to say that Somerville should not be investing in companies involved in war crimes is as ridiculous as saying that the divestment movement over South African apartheid in the 1980s promoted hatred against white people.
Making Somerville a welcoming place doesn't mean avoiding these questions so as not to offend anyone; it means upholding our values of equality and human rights by divesting from entities involved with human rights violations and Israel's racist policies.
Sam Levine
Lexington
At least the candidate is transparent
Somerville mayoral candidate Willie Burnley Jr. has dealt with voters fairly by making his views about Israel clear. Voters can take these views into account. All politicians should be so transparent.
Felicia Nimue Ackerman
Providence
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Explainer-Does Trump have the power to ban mail-in ballots in U.S. elections?
By Jack Queen (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump wants to ban mail-in ballots in federal elections, a form of voting popular with many Americans. About three in 10 ballots were cast through the mail in the 2024 general election, according to the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. Trump, a Republican, does not have clear legal authority to do this, though his allies in Congress and state governments could enact policies barring the practice. Here is a look at Trump's authority and how the law could be changed. CAN TRUMP UNILATERALLY BAN MAIL-IN BALLOTS? Only states and the U.S. Congress can pass laws regulating elections. A unilateral ban by the president on mail-in ballots would likely exceed Trump's limited authority to enforce existing law. In a Monday social media post, Trump said mail-in ballots are susceptible to fraud and that he would lead a movement to ban them, beginning with an executive order bringing "honesty" to the November 2026 midterm elections. Republicans have filed scores of lawsuits seeking to end mail-in voting in recent years, citing possible fraud. Democrats generally support mail-in ballots as a way to expand access to voting. Voter fraud in the U.S. is extremely rare, multiple studies have shown. White House representatives provided a general statement about Trump's election policies but did not answer questions about his legal authority to ban mail-in ballots or what an executive order would say. COULD TRUMP'S ALLIES BAN MAIL-IN BALLOTS? States are responsible for administering their votes under the U.S. Constitution, and Republican-controlled legislatures could pass laws banning mail-in ballots so long as they do not conflict with federal law. Congress could ban the use of mail-in ballots in federal elections and override state laws protecting their use, but Trump's Republican Party has slim majorities in Congress and would face difficulty getting past opposition by Democrats. Republicans hold 53 Senate seats. To pass a mail-in ballot ban they would need to end the filibuster, a longstanding tradition requiring 60 of the chamber's 100 members to approve most legislation. State and federal laws banning mail-in voting could be challenged in court as unconstitutional impediments to voting. WHAT OTHER POWERS DO PRESIDENTS HAVE OVER ELECTIONS? Presidents in the U.S. have some discretion in enforcing election laws, and Trump could try to use those powers to end or restrict mail-in voting, though it is unclear how. In June, a federal judge blocked parts of an executive order by Trump requiring voters to prove they are U.S. citizens and attempting to prevent states from counting mail-in ballots received after Election Day. The Trump administration is appealing. "The Constitution does not grant the president any specific powers over elections," said U.S. District Judge Denise Casper, an appointee of Democratic President Barack Obama.
New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
Neighbors hurl antisemitic slurs at father of Georgia woman killed working for Israel's border patrol: video
A grieving father of an American woman killed while serving on Israel's border patrol was verbally abused by neighbors who shouted antisemitic slurs and mocked him for his daughter's death, according to the hurting dad and video. Sgt. Elisheva Rose Ida Lubin, 20, was stabbed to death by a teenage 'terrorist' while patrolling Jerusalem's Old City in November 2023. 5 Rose Lubin was killed after a teenage 'terrorist' stabbed her while on patrol in November 2023. Israel Police Rose was a 'lone soldier' living in Israel without her family after immigrating there in August 2021 and starting her mandated army duty in March 2022 — more than a year before the Israel-Hamas War officially began. Her father, David Lubin, hasn't known peace since his daughter's untimely death. 5 David Lubin's neighbors allegedly called him a 'k–e.' David Lubin Back home in Atlanta, where Rose lived with her family before moving to Israel, David said he's been frequently harassed by his vindictive neighbors who labeled the mourning father as a 'corrupt Israeli.' The simmering tensions between the two households came to a head when David posted signage honoring Rose across from his neighbors, who had other signs claiming support for Palestinians alongside bits covered with derogatory Jewish slurs, he said. David told Atlanta News First that he never took issue with his neighbors' signs, as they had a right to display whatever they wanted. 5 David went across the street to confront his neighbors, who defended the use of the slur. David Lubin He tried to shake off their comments, at first — until he said he heard the irate woman call him a 'k–e' and shout that 'your daughter deserved to die,' he told the outlet. David marched across the street and confronted his neighbors while they each filmed one another on their phones. 5 Anna Bouyzk allegedly told David that Rose's death was his fault. David Lubin 'You are calling yourself a k–e, you know what you are. You know what you are better than me. You are a corrupt politician with a daughter in the IDF that went there to kill, and has killed maybe in friendly fire because the Israeli soldiers kill each other all the time, and you know very well,' one of his neighbors, Anna Bouyzk, insisted as they argued over the meaning of the Jewish slur. Bouyzk and her husband Mark, the co-founder of the bought-out genetics company AKESOgen, went on to insist Rose's death was okay because 'she was fighting.' 5 Bouyzk insisted that she isn't a 'Jew hater' because she has other 'Jew friends.' David Lubin 'Do you realize when you say that how disgusting you are? You are disgusting. You are disgusting. You are the most disgusting person I've ever met. 'Because you're a Jew, you don't understand'? You are so confused,' David spat. Bouyzk later doubled down and told the outlet that she had no qualms about lobbing the detestable slur at David. 'I don't regret what I said, and I'll say it a million times again. And I'm not a Jew hater because I have Jew friends,' she told the outlet. Bouyzk admitted, almost proudly, that she called David on Monday and told him that he was responsible for his daughter's death. David, growing desperate, said he is considering reporting Bouyzk's harassment to local police.
Business Insider
2 hours ago
- Business Insider
The White House just joined TikTok a month before it's set to be banned (again)
A lot can change in a year — just ask TikTok. Last year, the US government took the extraordinary step of voting to ban the popular app used by millions of Americans, citing national security concerns. On Tuesday, the White House became its latest user. The White House TikTok account launched with a video montage of President Donald Trump narrated by the man himself. "Every day I wake up determined to deliver a better life for the people all across this nation," Trump says over images of him with UFC head Dana White, law enforcement officers, and American workers. "I am your voice!" The account's second post featured various shots of the White House during different seasons. The White House joined the app less than a month before it's set to be banned in the US on September 17 unless it's sold to a US buyer, though that deadline has already been extended several times. "The Trump administration is committed to communicating the historic successes President Trump has delivered to the American people with as many audiences and platforms as possible," Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary, said in a statement to Business Insider. "President Trump's message dominated TikTok during his presidential campaign, and we're excited to build upon those successes and communicate in a way no other administration has before." The White House did not respond to questions about whether the divest-or-ban deadline would be extended again or if a deal was expected by the deadline. Lawmakers in April 2024 voted to ban TikTok unless its China-based parent company, ByteDance, sold its American assets. Some officials cited concerns that sensitive data belonging to American users could end up in the hands of the Chinese government, and members of Congress have said it could be used for Chinese Communist Party propaganda. TikTok has said it does not share data with the Chinese government. The TikTok divest-or-ban law, signed by President Joe Biden last year, gave TikTok until January 19 to sell or risk shutting down. The app briefly went dark that day for US-based users before coming back online, with TikTok crediting Trump for its return. The White House has said the president does not want TikTok to go dark and prefers it be sold. Trump has delayed the divest-or-ban deadline three times since taking office in January. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC last month that TikTok will go dark again unless China agrees to a deal that will give Americans control over the app. "We've made the decision. You can't have Chinese control and have something on 100 million American phones," Lutnick said, adding that China's decision would be coming "very soon."
