Patriots owner urging people to ‘stand up against Jewish hate’ with ads during NFL games

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft is urging Americans to “stand up against Jewish hate” and antisemitism in new TV ads airing during NFL games.

Kraft’s Foundation to Combat Antisemitism (FCAS) aired an ad during the first quarter of the Patriots and New York Jets game on Sunday.

“There are less than 8 million Jewish people in this country,” the ad reads. “Fewer than are watching this game. They need you to add your voice.”

The FCAS said in a press release the organization will launch a multimillion-dollar campaign to “scale the message further” this coming spring.

“Recent events and conversations have accelerated the urgency for the Foundation and the Kraft family to issue a rallying cry,” the release reads.

The news follows a spate of widely condemned antisemitic comments from Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West.

A message promoting Ye’s views was projected onto a Florida football stadium on Saturday.

Former President Trump was also criticized this month for posting on his social media platform Truth Social that Jewish people should “get their act together” and be more grateful to him.

Kraft’s foundation is spreading the hashtag #StandUpToJewishHate as part of its campaign to raise awareness.

The foundation’s website lists hate crime statistics against Jewish people, showing that antisemitic incidents in the U.S. have doubled from about 751 recorded crimes in 2013 to more than 2,000 in 2020, according to the FBI’s data.

Jewish people make up just 2.4 percent of the U.S. population yet are victims of 55 percent of all religious hate crimes, according to the FBI.

Kraft, who is Jewish, started the foundation in 2019 and poured $20 million of his own money into establishing the organization.

He said in a statement that “we must do more to make people aware that antisemitism is a growing threat against Jews on social media and in communities across the country.”

“I have committed tremendous resources toward this effort and am vowing to do more. I encourage others to join in these efforts,” Kraft said. “My hope is this commercial will continue to enhance the national conversation about the need to speak out against hatred of all types, and particularly to stand up to Jewish hate.”