Antisemitism on X: Elon Musk says he is 'Jewish by association' after Auschwitz visit
Tech billionaire Elon Musk toured Nazi death camp Auschwitz-Birkenau in Poland on Monday amid widespread outcry over the proliferation of antisemitic posts on his social media platform, X.
The visit to the notorious extermination camp occurred after Jewish leaders had pressured Musk to witness firsthand the horrors inflicted upon millions of Jews and others during the Holocaust. Afterwards, the SpaceX and Tesla CEO attended a conference on antisemitism organized by the European Jewish Association in the nearby Polish city of Krakow.
“It was incredibly moving and deeply sad and tragic that humans could do this to other humans,” Musk said about the visit, according to the Associated Press. “I’m a student of history, so I had seen the pictures, I’d seen the videos, but ... it hits you much more in the heart when you see it in person.”
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Musk sparks uproar after X post agreeing with antisemitic tropes
Musk, who purchased Twitter in 2022 and renamed it X, came under fire in November for a post on the social media site accusing Jews of pushing hatred against white people.
The claim that Musk amplified came at a time when antisemitic content had already been surging on X in the weeks after the Israel-Hamas war erupted on Oct. 7, 2023. Musk's post sparked an international uproar, prompting advertisers to flee the platform and the White House to issue a public rebuke.
"It is unacceptable to repeat the hideous lie behind the most fatal act of antisemitism in American history at any time, let alone one month after the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust," White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said in a statement at the time.
Musk had replied on Nov. 15 to another X user who posted antisemitic tropes with the message, "you have said the actual truth." The post, which was viewed by more than 8 million users and was favorited 38,000 times, remains active.
After Apple, IBM and Walt Disney pulled ads from the platform, Musk fired back, calling the advertising boycott "blackmail" and repeatedly telling the advertisers to "(expletive) yourself."
Musk later apologized for amplifying the antisemitic conspiracy theory, saying it was "one of the most foolish if not the most foolish thing I’ve ever done on the platform.”
Musk says 'I'm aspirationally Jewish' in interview with Ben Shapiro
Musk visited the Auschwitz-Birkenau site with his 3-year-old son and the conservative commentator Ben Shapiro, according to multiple outlets. They were accompanied by a delegation from the European Jewish Association, including organization Chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin and Holocaust survivor Gidon Lev.
The camp established by Nazi Germany during World War II is located near the town of Oswiecim in southern Poland. Within the fenced-off border of barbed wire are wooden barracks that once held prisoners and the ruins of gas chambers used to put 1.1 million of them to death.
Today, a monument to the victims stands at a place where annual remembrance ceremonies are held.
During the private tour, Musk laid a wreath at the wall of death and took part in a short memorial ceremony and service by the Birkenau memorial, the European Jewish Association told the Associated Press.
The organization had first pressured Musk in September to come to Auschwitz during a Zoom conference on antisemitism in an event that livestreamed on X.
At the EJA symposium later that day, Musk admitted to having previously been “naive” about the extent of antisemitism.
“In the circles that I move, I see almost no antisemitism,” Musk said at the conference in a discussion with Shapiro, of the Daily Wire. “I have twice as many Jewish friends as non-Jewish friends. I’m like Jewish by association, I’m aspirationally Jewish.”
Contributing: The Associated Press
Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]