❓WHAT HAPPENED: Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D) compared immigrants hiding from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to Anne Frank hiding from the Nazis during World War II, sparking backlash from the U.S. Holocaust Museum and members of the Jewish community.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: Governor Walz, the U.S. Holocaust Museum, Ambassador Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, and Jewish-American activist Shabbos Kestenbaum.
📍WHEN & WHERE: The comments were made during a Sunday press conference in Minnesota, ahead of International Holocaust Memorial Day. The U.S. Holocaust Museum and Jewish leaders responded to Walz’s comments this week.
💬KEY QUOTE: “Anne Frank was targeted and murdered solely because she was Jewish. Leaders making false equivalencies to her experience for political purposes is never acceptable.” – U.S. Holocaust Museum.
🎯IMPACT: The remarks have drawn widespread criticism, with some accusing Walz of exploiting Holocaust history and undermining law enforcement.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D) is facing intense backlash for comparing immigrants hiding from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to Anne Frank hiding from the Nazis during the Holocaust. Speaking at a press conference on Sunday, Walz stated, “We have got children hiding in their houses, afraid to go outside. Many of us grew up reading that story of Anne Frank. Somebody’s gonna write that children’s story about Minnesota.”
The remarks, made just two days before International Holocaust Memorial Day, have drawn sharp rebukes from the U.S. Holocaust Museum and Jewish leaders. The museum, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), responded to Walz’s remarks, writing, “Anne Frank was targeted and murdered solely because she was Jewish. Leaders making false equivalencies to her experience for political purposes is never acceptable.”
“Despite tensions in Minneapolis, exploiting the Holocaust is deeply offensive, especially as antisemitism surges,” the institution concluded.
Ambassador Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, President Donald J. Trump’s antisemitism envoy, also weighed in, stating, “Ignorance like this cheapens the horror of the Holocaust. Anne Frank was in Amsterdam legally and abided by Dutch law. She was hauled off to a death camp because of her race and religion. Her story has nothing to do with the illegal immigration, fraud, and lawlessness plaguing Minnesota today.”
Jewish-American activist Shabbos Kestenbaum labeled Walz “evil” for his comments, adding, “One million Jewish children were killed during the Holocaust. Illegal immigrants are offered thousands of dollars to take a free flight home.”
This is not the first time Walz has compared ICE agents to Nazi forces. Last year, he referred to them as a “modern-day Gestapo,” claiming they operated in “unmarked vans” and “disappeared” individuals. The comments from the Democrat governor have, critics contend, played an outsized role in motivating political violence against federal law enforcement in his state.
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