A New York man who had gotten a gig dressing up as Santa Claus for the Christmas season ended up losing the job after he got into a heated argument about the Israel-Hamas war at a local synagogue, The New York Times reported.
Ken Dorph was replaced by the Sag Harbor Chamber of Commerce on the eve of its holiday event, at which he would ride on top of a fire truck to the chamber's Christmas festival.
He was reportedly booted after members of Temple Adas Israel complained to event organizers, saying that he made people feel uncomfortable during a Nov. 30 talk titled “Answering Tough Questions on Israel" at which he criticized a pair of speakers from the American Jewish Committee while sitting in the audience.
“He was very antagonistic, belittling them,” said 85-year-old temple member Rona Klopman. “I could see why people would not be comfortable with him as Santa, who is supposed to be this jolly fellow trying to keep peace in the world.”
The Times' says video of the event shows Dorph voicing "frustration" on "multiple occasions" during the talk, which "grew tense" at times. The Times' report is vague on what was exactly said, but points out that Dorph objected to the speakers' take on the language within the Hamas charter (which calls for Israel's complete destruction) and Jewish settlements in the West Bank. He also reportedly accused the speakers of feeding the audience with pro-Israel talking points.
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“Honestly, you two could have been propaganda for the Netanyahu government,” he said. “I am appalled.”
Dorph later claimed he "never said a curse word or stood up or threatened anyone, but I was hot under the collar, and I regret that."
“If we’re going to have a democracy, even if it’s angry exchanges, we need to be able to have these conversations without being punished,” Dorph said.
Rabbi Daniel Geffen of Temple Adas Israel acknowledged Dorph's right to free speech, but added that free speech requires “taking responsibility for not just what we say, but how we say it and when we say it.”
Read the full story over at The New York Times.
