LETTER TO EDITOR: Misguided guilt by association

In his letter (“The new face of anti-Semitism,” Monday), Brad Botwin of Help Save Maryland rightfully denounced anti-Semitism in Venezuela. However, the Jewish community also knows all too well the dangers of false and baseless accusations or conspiracy theories. This is why the Jewish community has a long and proud history of denouncing not only anti-Semitism, but also bigotry and discrimination against any group. Mr. Botwin’s attempt to assign guilt by association is therefore misguided and ironic, as just last week Help Save Maryland was named a nativist extremist group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, a civil rights organization devoted to combating hate groups.

Casa de Maryland is a trusted partner of the Jewish community in Maryland. I was proud to speak with its president, Gustavo Torres, on a Martin Luther King Day panel that was hosted by our local Jewish Federation and Jewish Community Relations Council. We should be celebrating the fact that Casa recently raised additional support for their amazing work to improve the quality of life and fight for equal treatment and opportunities for low-income Latinos and their families.

The Washington region and the Washington Jewish community are both stronger as a result of Casa’s work to make the region safer and fairer for immigrants. We look forward to many more years of working together.

JACOB FEINSPAN

Executive director

Jews United for Justice

Washington