DSA protesters yell ‘Tax the Jews’ at San Francisco labor gathering

Members of the Democratic Socialists of America’s San Francisco chapter were accused of initiating the protest.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Antisemitic chants broke out during a political event in San Francisco Wednesday afternoon after protesters shifted from slogans about wealth taxation to targeting Jews, prompting a public condemnation from Mayor Daniel Lurie.

Lurie said individuals present at the event began chanting “tax the rich” before changing the chant to “tax the Jews.”

The gathering was organized by the mayor and District Five Supervisor Bilal Mahmood and included labor leaders and workers to announce an economic plan focused on job creation and housing, according to Lurie.

“This was an event I put on with [District Five] Supervisor [Bilal] Mahmood, labor leaders, and dozens of workers to announce a plan that creates more jobs for those workers and housing for San Franciscans,” Lurie wrote in a post on X/Twitter.

He added, “Suggesting that Jews are wealthy is a tired trope, and targeting our community at an event focused on creating economic opportunity for San Franciscans is decidedly antisemitic.”

In video from the incident, a woman among the protesters was heard shouting, “tax Israel and ‘tax the Jews.’” A witness told the New York Post that the antisemitic chanting continued for about two minutes.

Lurie said he would not tolerate antisemitism or any other form of hatred and said such behavior had no place in San Francisco. He did not identify the individuals responsible for the chants.

Members of the Democratic Socialists of America’s San Francisco chapter were accused of initiating the protest, according to the mayor’s account.

The DSA San Francisco chapter denied that the woman filmed making the antisemitic chants was affiliated with the organization, despite her presence at their protest.

The incident comes amid continued scrutiny of the Democratic Socialists of America following earlier controversies.

On October 8, 2023, the day after the October 7 massacre, the Democratic Socialists of America held a rally in Manhattan celebrating the attack.

Participants at that event chanted “700,” reflecting the confirmed death toll from the massacre at the time.

No arrests were reported in connection with Wednesday’s incident, and city officials did not announce any immediate action beyond the mayor’s condemnation.