Elon Musk attends anti-Semitism summit in Krakow and visits Auschwitz
Billionaire Elon Musk recently visited Auschwitz, after attending a summit organized by the European Jewish Association on anti-Semitism, in Krakow. The visit follows several months of controversy over his social network X and the way anti-Semitic content was handled on its platform, according to ABC.
Elon Musk visited the site of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Nazi death camp on Monday.
The trip comes as the billionaire faces criticism for subscribing to an antisemitic conspiracy theory and allowing hate messages on his social media platform, X. https://t.co/Ssfu5UkXO7
— ABC News (@ABC) January 22, 2024
Musk took part in a commemorative ceremony at the former Nazi concentration camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau, where millions of Jews were killed during the Second World War.
Musk’s visit could offer him the opportunity to meditate on the Holocaust, coming several months after he drew strong criticism for publishing a tweet promoting an unsubstantiated anti-Semitic conspiracy theory. The theory suggested that Jewish communities harbored hostility towards white people.
The White House and several Jewish groups strongly condemned the tweet, leading to an avalanche of criticism of the billionaire. This wave of negative reactions prompted major advertisers such as Apple, Disney and IBM to suspend their ads on the X platform.
The incident reinforced many people’s doubts about Musk’s commitment to anti-Semitism, as well as the moderation policies he has instituted at X since his acquisition of Twitter (now X).
Musk backtracked, stating that his publication and statements were among the most insane things he’d shared on his platform.
But the billionaire has reacted vigorously to these accusations, which he believes to be unfounded. He claimed that he had been falsely accused of anti-Semitism, highlighting his commitment to fighting online hate.
Elon Musk went so far as to threaten legal action against the Anti-Defamation League over allegations that hate speech had proliferated since he took control of X.
It remains unclear whether Musk’s recent trip will result in a change in the way X moderates hate content.
January 27 marks the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, and pays tribute to the six million Jewish victims, 1.1 million of whom were cruelly killed in the Auschwitz camp in Poland.