20 | MARCH 18 • 2021 U .S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence (MI-14) was appointed March 4 by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to serve on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council. Lawrence, founder and co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Black-Jewish Relations, will replace the council seat held by the late civil rights leader Rep. John Lewis. The council was established by Congress in 1980 to lead the nation in remembering the Holocaust and to raise private funds to construct the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. Once the museum opened in 1993, the council became the governing board of trustees of the museum, an independent establishment of the govern- ment operating as a public-pri- vate partnership that receives some federal funding to sup- port operations of the museum building. “Given that I represent the only Holocaust memo- rial museum in the state of Michigan, this appointment to serve on the United States Holocaust Memorial Council is an honor and carries a lot of significance for me,” Lawrence told the Jewish News. “My dis- trict is home to one of the larg- est Jewish populations in the state, and I’m proud to fight for them in the halls of Congress every day. “Remembering the lives lost during the Holocaust as well as the families that were torn apart is critical to ensur- ing that such atrocities and evil never happen again,” she continued. “ As the co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Black-Jewish Relations, and the second vice chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, I know that the Black and Jewish communities have a shared history. “In the face of bigotry and hate, our communities have always been champions for jus- tice, truth and equality. I look forward to working with the council to support the mission and efforts of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. ” The council meets twice a year and consists of 55 members appointed by the president, five members each from the Senate and House of Representatives and three mem- bers from the Departments of Education, Interior and State. Ron Weiser, University of Michigan Regent and former chairman of the Michigan Republican Party, is also a member of the council. OUR COMMUNITY Rep. Brenda Lawrence is appointed to U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council. Important Role DANNY SCHWARTZ STAFF WRITER Rep. Brenda Lawrence C ustomers and staff of a kosher market in Southfield endured an attempt of anti-Israel intimida- tion recently, but none of them gave in to the perpetrator. A Yemeni content creator on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok known for skits and pranks went to the Grove Kosher Market, formerly known as One Stop Kosher, and harassed patrons by showing them a picture on his phone of a Palestinian flag with the words “Free Palestine. ” In the video, the man can be seen walking throughout and in front of the shop asking cus- tomers to read the message on his phone out loud and record- ing their reactions. None of the customers ended up reading the “Free Palestine” message, with most of them just walking away. One customer quickly real- ized what the man was doing and confronted him outside of the store, saying, “There is no Palestine, ” and later asking, “You have nothing to do in your life?” At one point in the video, a manager of the store confront- ed the man, asking, “ Are you here to shop? What else do you need?” The man posted the video on his Instagram account, and has received many negative reac- tions from his own followers. One comment on the video read, “OK, but hear me out, what if we don’t go around harassing random people?” “This is really wrong, and I’m embarrassed for you, ” said another commenter, a non-sup- porter of Israel. “Of course, there’s going to be some Jewish people who do support Israel, but purposefully going into Jewish communities/shops and doing this is not pushing the movement to further progres- sion, is it?” The video posted on his TikTok account has amassed 5.6 million views, with mostly negative comments on there as well. “I’m Palestinian, but this is just wrong. Do better please, ” one commenter said. “What is the purpose of doing this? These are just peo- ple trying to shop at a kosher market. Leave them alone, ” another commenter added. “Counterproductive, antise- mitic, not activism, just wrong, ” yet another responded. No Grove spokesperson was available to comment. Anti-Israel provocateur wins no friends at kosher market. Harassment Thwarted DANNY SCHWARTZ STAFF WRITER A screenshot of a Grove shopper being harassed in a video of the incident uploaded by Rabbi Hoffman of Yeshiva World, available on thejewishnews.com.