CAIR's defense of Zahra Billoo's antisemitism: "Some of our best friends are Jews!"

I reported earlier this month that Zahra Billoo, executive-director of the San Francisco Bay Area branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-SFBA), spoke in a panel session at an American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) convention where she spouted antisemitism, calling synagogues and Jewish institutions the "enemy" of Muslims.

We need to pay attention to the Anti-Defamation League. We need to pay attention to the Jewish Federation. We need to pay attention to the Zionist synagogues. We need to pay attention to the Hillel chapters on our campuses, because just because they are your friends today, doesn't mean that they have your back when it comes to human rights. 

So oppose the vehement fascist, but oppose the polite Zionist too. They are not your friends...

 I am not going to sugarcoat that, they are your enemies. There are organizations and infrastructures out there who are working to harm you. Make no mistake of it. They would sell you down the line if they could, and they very often do behind your back. 

This caused quite an uproar, with even the Jonathan Greenblatt of the ADL condemning Billoo's statements and demanding a condemnation from CAIR.

But instead of condemning Billoo, CAIR says it stands by her bigoted statements. It downplays what she said and then uses the oldest excuse in the book for antisemites.

In the wake of her speech, anti-Muslim websites misquoted Zahra’s remarks and falsely claimed that she had discouraged Muslims from working with Jewish groups at-large.

This is a blatant lie. In fact, Zahra praised the many Jewish activists and groups that support human rights for all people, including Palestinians, and specifically encouraged Muslims to engage in interfaith collaboration with Jewish organizations such as IfNotNow and Jewish Voice for Peace.

Really? She didn't list any purportedly Jewish groups besides those two. 

And Billoo specifically called out "Zionist synagogues." Which synagogues are anti-Zionist?

There are about 4000 synagogues in America, and hundreds more makeshift minyanim in workplaces and people's houses. 

I am aware of only one synagogue that is explicitly "non-Zionist" and it is barely a synagogue. Brant Rosen's Tzedek Chicago meets for prayer only on Friday nights, in the basement of a Lutheran church. 

Which means that approximately 99.98% of American synagogues are not anti-Israel. 

Every single one of those are considered enemies by CAIR and Billoo.

CAIR's defense? They like some Jews like Brant Rosen, so they cannot possibly be antisemitic! The members of the other 99.98% of synagogues don't represent real Judaism!

Already in the 1930s people were making fun of "some of my best friends are Jews"  defense against the charge of antisemitism. 

What CAIR is really saying is that some of their best friends are Jewish dhimmis, anxious to please their Muslim masters and live in eternal proleptic dhimmitude.

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