US-based pro-Israel civil rights advocacy group the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has come under fire after it called an alleged “Nazi salute” made by Elon Musk at the inauguration of US President Donald Trump as merely any “awkward gesture”.
While onstage speaking to Trump supporters in Washington DC after the official inauguration ceremony, Musk slammed his right hand into his chest and then held it out in a manner akin to the Nazi salute or the Roman salute used by fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.
As the crowd loudly cheered, the world’s richest man turned to spectators behind the stage and repeated the gesture, thanking them for assuring “the future of civilisation” by voting for Trump.
The gestures by Musk immediately caused outrage on social media, with users immediately identifying it as a “Nazi” or “fascist” salute.
However, the ADL, which focuses mostly on alleged instances of antisemitism but also covers racism and extremism more generally, bizarrely came to the defence of Musk, calling his salute an “awkward gesture”.
“This is a delicate moment. It’s a new day and yet so many are on edge. Our politics are inflamed, and social media only adds to the anxiety,” the ADL said in a statement on X, which is owned by Musk.
“It seems that [Musk] made an awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm, not a Nazi salute, but again, we appreciate that people are on edge. In this moment, all sides should give one another a bit of grace, perhaps even the benefit of the doubt, and take a breath. This is a new beginning. Let’s hope for healing and work toward unity in the months and years ahead.”
Musk then responded to the ADL post by saying: “Thanks guys” followed by a laughing emoji.
This led to a furious response from many social media users, with Democratic member of Congress Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez leading the criticism of the ADL.
“Just to be clear, you are defending a Heil Hitler salute that was performed and repeated for emphasis and clarity,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on X.
“People can officially stop listening to you as any sort of reputable source of information now. You work for them. Thank you for making that crystal clear to all,” she added.
Ocasio-Cortez’s sentiments were also shared by other prominent social media users, including experts on fascism.
In a widely shared post, New York University history professor Ruth Ben-Ghiat wrote: “Historian of fascism here. It was a Nazi salute and a very belligerent one too.”
Other users could not help but notice the hypocrisy of the ADL in defending Musk’s use of an alleged ‘Nazi salute’, while often attacking supporters of the Palestinian cause as “antisemitic”.
Kyle Kulinski, the host of the popular left-wing YouTube podcast Secular Talk, shared the ADL’s statement on X, writing: “If you’re keeping score ‘free Palestine’ = anti-semitic. Nazi salute = not anti-semitic.”
The ADL has repeatedly come under fire for its openly pro-Israel stance and its efforts to equate anti-Zionism or support for Palestine with antisemitism. For example, the group lists the pro-Palestine slogan “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” as “antisemitic”, despite the chant most commonly referring to the freedom of Palestinians living under brutal Israeli military rule in the occupied territories.
Some have speculated that it came to Musk’s defence due to his position within the extremely pro-Israel Trump Administration, where the SpaceX owner is an advisor to Donald Trump and will lead an unofficial department called the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
In 2023, the ADL condemned Musk for antisemitism after he endorsed a post on X that accused Jewish people of “pushing hatred against whites”.
Musk later apologised for this during a visit to Auschwitz with far-right anti-Islam media figure Ben Shapiro.
In the last couple of years, Musk has endorsed Islamophobic political parties in the UK and Europe, including Germany’s Alliance for Deutschland (AFD) party, which has links to Neo-Nazi groups.
Earlier this month, Musk repeatedly expressed his support for British anti-Islam activist Tommy Robinson and repeated Islamophobic lies about “grooming gangs” in Northern England.
