MINNEAPOLIS – Democratic National Committee Deputy Chair and Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison recently compared illegal immigrants in the United States to Jews in Nazi Germany.
On Monday, Ellison spoke at Beyond DACA, an event organized by Minnesota Community and Technical College to address the “community concerns about DACA and the future of undocumented immigrants.”
The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) was put in place by former President Barack Obama in 2012, a move that has been criticized as unconstitutional. Earlier this month the Trump administration announced plans to slowly wind-down the program, giving Congress six months to present a legislative solution before the program comes to an end. Ellison attacked the decision, comparing illegal immigrants to Jews in Nazi Germany.
“If you ask yourself, ‘What would I do if I was a Gentile in 1941 if my Jewish neighbors were under attack by the Nazis? Would I give them sanctuary?’ — you might be about to find out what you would do,” Ellison said in a video of the event obtained by GOP War Room.
“Will you pass that moral test or will you fail it?” Ellison added.
Ellison said he believes Americans should “give your neighbors sanctuary,” comparing ‘Dreamers’ to Jews facing persecution during the Holocaust. Making the claim that most American citizens know illegal immigrants who are currently living in the United States, Ellison called on people to “do the right thing” and “fight” the end of DACA.
“This is not someone else’s fight, this is all of our fight. But some people are in the bullseye and others of us are not exactly the target,” Ellison said. “Therefore, it is our responsibility to stand up, fight, and do the right thing.”
Ellison has previously faced criticism for his ties to anti-Semitic figures. Prior to his time as an elected official, Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, was involved with the Nation of Islam and praised their anti-Semitic leader Louis Farrakhan. Ellison has since distanced himself from the Nation of Islam, however, questions about his anti-Semitic associations continue to haunt him. During the race for DNC Chair, prominent Democrat and Harvard Law School professor Alan Dershowitz wrote a scathing column saying he would “quit the Democratic Party” if Ellison was elected chairman.
Watch Ellison’s remarks below:
