The Democratic Socialists of America “supplies legitimacy to extremism,” according to Gerard Filitti, senior counsel at the Lawfare Project, who said that the DSA is helping normalize rhetoric that poses a broader threat to American national security.
Filitti and Jayne Zirkle, director of communication and outreach at the project, spoke with JNS ahead of a rally scheduled for Sept. 8 outside the New York City chapter of the DSA, where rally organizers plan to protest what they describe as antisemitic, anti-American and extremist ideology.
“The DSA supplies legitimacy to extremism,” Filitti told JNS. “It launders the message of Hamas.”
The “Unite against Hate Rally,” organized by End Jewish Hatred and the Lawfare Project, is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Seward Park in Manhattan, just days before the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.
A native New Yorker, Filitt said that the anniversary makes the demonstration particularly significant.
“Having experienced 9/11, it is disturbing that we are seeing the same type of Islamist extremism that produced 9/11 being lauded on the city streets today,” he told JNS.
“It’s a national security issue,” Filitti said. “Jews are feeling it first and foremost, because a lot of what has been laundering is Jew-hatred. But ultimately, this is an ideology and a danger to American democracy to all of America.”
Zirkle described the ideology as “anti-Western civilization and anti-America,” which she thinks represents a broad threat.
“This isn’t just political,” she told JNS. “This is something that impacts whether we live in a free country or not. It transcends politics.”
The organizers are expecting 9/11 victim family members to speak at the rally, including relatives who signed a petition calling on New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani not to show up for the anniversary ceremony.
The lineup will also include Muslim activist Anila Ali and Catholic League president Bill Donohue. Most of the scheduled speakers are not Jewish, according to Zirkle.
The rally follows a May protest outside Gracie Mansion that Zirkle said drew more than 1,000 people. The group has continued mobilizing around incidents involving Jewish Americans and other communities.
For Filitti, the DSA is particularly concerning because he views it as “more than an organization.”
“This is an ideological movement,” he said. “It’s an ideological movement. It’s an activist network.”
“It is the corruption of the system in America, where systemic hatred, not just of Jews but of America, is being normalized,” Filitti said.
Zirkle wants attendees to leave with a straightforward message.
“The DSA is anti-USA,” she told JNS.
The national anthem will be performed at the event, and organizers encourage attendees to bring American flags.
Filliti told JNS that the 25th anniversary of 9/11 should serve as more than a commemoration.
“‘Never forget’ means that we actually take action and that we don’t just use that as a slogan,” he said.
