In 2022, Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) privately begged a local Jewish leader in Westchester County for any photographic evidence of the two of them together so he could "show the world I’m friends with Jewish People,” Jewish Insider's Matthew Kassel reported on Tuesday.
This comes as Bowman, a member of the progressive "Squad" who is currently polling behind primary challenger George Latimer, is facing extensive criticism for his handling of issues surrounding the Israel-Hamas war, in a district with a substantial Jewish population.
"The Jewish leader, who described the exchange on the condition of anonymity to protect his privacy, did have at least one photo on hand from a Jewish community gathering in Bowman’s district months earlier at which the then-freshman Democrat had vowed to sign on to a House bill aimed at strengthening the Abraham Accords — a promise he fulfilled just a few days later," wrote Kassel. "But by the time Bowman sent his request to the Jewish leader in an apparent effort to counter mounting dissatisfaction with his record on Israel amid the campaign, the New York legislator had since reversed course and pulled his support for the bill aimed at further normalizing relations between Israel and its Arab neighbors — angering Jewish activists in the district who said they felt blindsided by his abrupt decision."
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The Jewish leader said of the text exchange, “I was uncomfortable. I kind of joked around with him about it. I said, ‘Oh, I’m sure you guys have it. Don’t worry about it.’” He ultimately declined to share the photo.
In recent months, Bowman has triggered outrage after he claimed that "there's no evidence of ... raped women" in Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel that led to over 1,000 people killed and hundreds taken hostage, and that the reports of rape were "propaganda." He later backtracked after U.N. reports found extensive evidence of sexual violence committed by Hamas terrorists.
This also comes as Bowman has been criticized for old writings in which he pushed a number of conspiracy theories, including 9/11 trutherism, and a YouTube channel where he followed Flat Earther accounts and the screeds of the antisemitic Black supremacist Louis Farrakhan — as well as a bizarre incident in which he pulled a fire alarm in a House office building.
