Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, widely known as “America’s Rabbi,” is chiming in on his “friend” Roseanne Barr’s recent controversial statement that “nobody died in the Holocaust.”
On a recent episode of the podcast “This Past Weekend with Theo Von,” Barr, 70, commented on what “truth” means in America and how platforms can limit discussions of certain topics.
“Like for the real truth that, you know, and I’m glad that they did set up all these guidelines so that we only are allowed to speak the truth,” Barr said.
She later continued, “And that is the truth. And nobody died in the Holocaust, either. That’s the truth. It should happen. Six million Jews should die right now ’cause they cause all the problems in the world. But it never happened. But it never happened — mandated.”
Barr then noted that she herself is “100%” Jewish — no sarcasm implied.
In an op-ed in the Jewish Journal, Boteach shared that he has not spoken to Barr, but he finds it “hard to believe” that the actress “who has joined me in fighting antisemitism…would deny the historical fact of six million Jews being murdered in the largest genocide in world history.”
“The Holocaust is an incontrovertible historical fact. It’s absurd to even have to mention it,” he stated.
Podcast host Theo Von tweeted that Barr’s comments were allegedly sarcasm and satire, saying that the clip is taken out of context.
However, Boteach wrote that “sarcasm and explanations aside, my friend Roseanne needs to personally and immediately clarify her statements,” as they can be used to fuel Holocaust deniers.
“This is a time for earnestness, not sarcasm. I call on my friend Roseanne to speak the truth she knows all too well, and the sooner the better,” he concluded.
Boteach, dubbed the “most famous Rabbi in America,” wasn’t the only one to slam the comedian’s remarks.
In a statement to The Post on Tuesday, Ronald Lauder, president of the World Jewish Congress, said Barr’s comments were “Nazism in its purest form.”
“Put simply, Roseanne Barr’s open and grotesque Holocaust denial is Nazism in its purest form, and a singular embodiment of the alarming rise of Jew-hatred in America that goes far beyond trafficking in conspiracy theories. Further, Mr. Von’s defense of Ms. Barr’s hatefully ignorant comments as being satirical is equally offensive,” Lauder stated.
He also called on both Apple Music and Spotify to remove the episode: “I am calling on both Apple Music and Spotify to remove this content from their streaming libraries immediately, for as long as his hateful voice is carried on their platforms, they are in league with those who wish harm to Jews the world over.”
Barr has been the center of quite a few controversies, most notably the cancellation of the “Roseanne” reboot after she posted a string of tweets that led to accusations of racism and antisemitism.
ABC ultimately revived the series without her and renamed it “The Conners.”
