Members of the Commission, scholars, and educators have issued an open letter expressing their position on the public anti-Semitic statements made by Remigijus Žemaitaitis, a Member of the Seimas.
Recently, offensive and ethnically hostile statements by R. Žemaitaitis have appeared in public space. In response, the Commission members, scholars, and educators expressed their position in an open letter. “The recent public statements by Remigijus Žemaitaitis, a Member of the Seimas, against our Jewish fellow citizens have once again revealed the anti-Semitic discourse that is still widespread and well established in the society, both on social media pages and in the activities of the ultra groups. What is astounding is that ethnic hatred is being incited by a politician representing the State of Lithuania, using trivial anti-Semitic stereotypes. ” the letter reads.
The letter also stresses that not reacting to those statements by the Member of the Seimas would be a short-sighted turning away from civic responsibility.