Julian Edelman is one of the most prominent Jewish athletes in recent American sports history. On the latest edition of Showtime’s “Inside the NFL,” the Patriots great sounded off on the rash of antisemitic ramblings from NBA star Kyrie Irving, as well as the relative silence from other NBA players.
“What people don’t realize with the antisemitism that’s being flowing off the chart is, this is the same hate speeches and the same propaganda and the same feelings that people have been saying since the 1930s and the 1940s in Germany, which led to the worst, most devastating time for the Jewish people,” said Edelman. “This was all basically the same kind of speech we’ve been hearing in the last few weeks in 2022.”
Edelman has spoken up about the dangers of antisemitism a few times over the last couple of years in response to anti-Jewish screeds from pro athletes. Back in 2020, he responded to antisemitic Instagram posts by wideout DeSean Jackson, and then again last year to an antisemitic slur spouted by Heat forward Meyers Leonard during a Twitch live stream.
Nearly two weeks ago, Irving promoted an antisemitic film, “Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America,” on his Twitter feed, and then defiantly defended himself for days. He apologized last Thursday night after the Nets had suspended him for at least five games.
Jaylen Brown and other members of the NBA Players’ Association say they feel Irving’s punishment is too harsh. Edelman says the lack of pushback from other athletes is unfortunate, but he doesn’t want to focus on their complicity.
“We only hold two percent of the population of the United States. There’s not many of us. We all know that. When something happens, and no one goes to bat for you, it’s a little concerning,” he said. “But we’re not here to get mad at people not going to bat for us. We’re here to show what good we bring to not just our community, but all communities, and these false claims people are saying.”
When Edelman was asked whether he heard antisemitic taunts on the field, he recounted one instance.
“We do hear those things every once in a while. I heard it once in the National Football League, but I’m not here to single no one out,” he said.
When faced with antisemitic propaganda, Edelman says the best response is discussion and education.
“We are a group of brothers, and that knucklehead who called me that, he’s still a brother of mine, and we still have to talk it out and let him know, ‘That’s not alright, and the reason it’s not alright is for these reasons,’” he said.
