United We Stand Summit is held in the White House

The United We Stand Summit is held today, on 15 September, in the White House to discuss ways to counter hate-fuelled violence. The event was prompted by the Buffalo shooting.

United States President Joe Biden hosts the United We Stand Summit at the White House on 15 September to discuss ways to “counter the corrosive effects of hate-fueled violence on our democracy and public safety,” reports The Jerusalem Post.

The summit was induced by the mass shooting at a Buffalo supermarket earlier this year, after which several groups reached out to President Biden, urging him to hold a summit on domestic extremism. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) was among them, noting that they have been fighting these issues for decades. According to ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt, the number of cases was the highest ever seen last year.

“The fact that the White House is organising this is important and a sign that they take this very seriously,” Greenblatt said. “It’s the first time in decades that anything like this has happened at the White House,” adding that getting attention from high-ranking officials is a very meaningful step.
Greenblatt highlighted that the perpetrator of the Buffalo shooting was motivated by the “great replacement theory”, the conspiracy theory that claims that Jews are trying to commit white genocide. He warned that with the growing number of conspiracy theories, there is a need for a ‘whole of society’ strategy.” Greenblatt claims that due to intense political polarisation, both sides “weaponise antisemitism for partisan gain.”

“We’ve seen a normalisation of extremism, using the Holocaust as a prop to make points about COVID-19. We are seeing it on the Right from election denying to the QAnon conspiracies, and you’re also seeing the growth of radical anti-Zionism from the Left – attacks on the Jewish state that demonise and dehumanise all Jews.”

The summit will include a bipartisan group “of federal, state and local officials, civil rights groups, faith and community leaders, technology and business leaders, law enforcement officials, former members of violent hate groups who now work to prevent violence, gun violence prevention leaders, media representatives and cultural figures,” the White House said in a statement.