Bounding Into Comics Gene Roddenberry is well known for founding the Star Trek franchise. However, the Roddenberry Foundation was also founded in his name by his son Rod Roddenberry in 2010. The foundation claims “to build on his late father’s legacy and philosophy of inclusion, diversity, and respect for life to drive social change and meaningfully improve the lives of people around the world.”
The Roddenberry Foundation funds the Roddenberry Fellowship, which is “a 12-month program that offers Fellows $50,000 to take an existing initiative to the next level and amplify its impact OR to launch a new initiative.”
The Roddenberry Foundation recently announced their 2020 Fellows and it includes political activist, former Women’s March co-chair, and Bernie Sanders surrogate Linda Sarsour, who has been accused of anti-Semitic behavior for her support of Louis Farrakhan and his Nation of Islam. Sarsour was granted the $50,000 Fellowship for the organization My Muslim Vote.
When we write the history of Islam in America, the Nation of #Islam is an integral part of that history.
— Linda Sarsour (@lsarsour) April 28, 2012
Farrakhan has repeatedly made statements where he claims Jews control the United States and that those who are controlling the United States are “the synagogue of Satan.”
In a speech in 1996, he stated:
“And you do with me as is written, but remember that I have warned you that Allah will punish you. You are wicked deceivers of the American people. You have sucked their blood. You are not real Jews, those of you that are not real Jews. You are the synagogue of Satan, and you have wrapped your tentacles around the U.S. government, and you are deceiving and sending this nation to hell.”
Even President Barack Obama described Farrakhan’s comments as “anti-Semitic” when he denounced them. President Obama stated, “I have been very clear in my denunciation of Minister Farrakhan’s anti-Semitic comments. I think that they are unacceptable and reprehensible. I did not solicit this support.”
Not only has Sarsour been accused of anti-semitism for her support of Farrakhan, but she she recently appeared at the American Muslims for Palestine conference in Chicago where she stated, “Ask them this, how can you be against white supremacy in America and the idea of being in a state based on race and class, but then you support a state like Israel that is based on supremacy, that is built on the idea that Jews are supreme to everyone else.”
Sarsour would claim her comments were about a recently passed law in Israel.
THREAD:
Over the weekend, I made comments about Israel that require context to understand. I was specifically referring to the racist argument at the heart of the nation-state law recently passed by the Israeli government – not the Jewish people. I apologize for the confusion.
— Linda Sarsour (@lsarsour) December 3, 2019