By Ed Malik, A | ed@ddnewsonline.com | posted 28th April, 2025
The Chicago Jewish Alliance issued a statement on Wednesday that clearly reflects their deep concern and frustration over Mayor Brandon Johnson’s participation in an Arab Heritage Month event where he wore a keffiyeh, especially in light of ongoing tensions stemming from the Israel-Hamas conflict and the symbolic interpretations the keffiyeh has taken on in recent years.
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The keffiyeh, traditionally a Middle Eastern garment, has long been a symbol of Palestinian identity and solidarity. However, since the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks, its use in pro-Palestinian demonstrations has amplified its perception by some, rightly or wrongly, as a symbol of anti-Israel militancy. Jewish groups, especially in the U.S. and Israel, are increasingly alarmed when such imagery appears alongside rhetoric they interpret as denying Israel’s right to exist.
In essence, the keffiyeh isn’t just a cultural symbol anymore. In today’s world, it’s worn at Hamas rallies. It’s paraded in the streets when mobs chant ‘From the river to the sea,’ a call for the eradication of Israel. It’s the uniform of those who cheered on the Oct. 7 massacre — where babies were burned, women raped, and over 1,200 Jews slaughtered.
“This is outrageous,” the alliance wrote. “For the mayor of Chicago to stand there—cloaked in a symbol now synonymous with Jewish bloodshed, flanked by an organization that justifies it—is more than tone-deaf. It’s a betrayal.”
“It tells Jewish Chicagoans: Your pain doesn’t matter. Your dead don’t count. Your safety is negotiable,” it continued, adding that the garment is “not neutral. It’s a flag of war.”
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“The keffiyeh isn’t just a cultural symbol. Not anymore. In today’s world, it’s worn at Hamas rallies. It’s paraded in the streets when mobs chant ‘From the river to the sea,’ a call for the eradication of Israel. It’s the uniform of those who cheered on the Oct. 7 massacre — where babies were burned, women raped, and over 1,200 Jews slaughtered.”
The Chicago Jewish Alliance’s statement is a strong denunciation, accusing Mayor Johnson of disregarding Jewish suffering by appearing with CAIR while wearing a keffiyeh. They argue it signals indifference to Jewish safety and grief.
The statement heavily criticizes CAIR, referencing its past legal controversies and its response to the October 7 attacks.
CAIR has consistently positioned itself as a civil rights group advocating for Muslim Americans, but it has also drawn scrutiny for controversial statements and affiliations, especially related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
CAIR blamed Israel for the Hamas-led terror attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 and was removed from the White House national strategy on antisemitism under the Biden administration. Its executive director, Nihad Awad, said that Israel does not have the right to self-defense.
While the alliance condemned the action, the organization added that Arab Heritage Month “should be celebrated” but “through food, music, poetry, and history,” and “not by embracing symbols of terror.”
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Lisa Katz, chief government affairs officer for the Combat Antisemitism Movement, encouraged Johnson “to engage in open dialogue with Chicago’s Jewish community, learn more about the evolving symbols of modern-day antisemitism, and show solidarity against antisemitism and hate in all their contemporary forms.”
“This moment presents an opportunity for education, for empathy and for leadership that brings communities together rather than deepening divides,” Katz wrote.
The broader American discourse around antisemitism and Islamophobia continues to grow more complicated and emotionally charged.