Call reporter’s anti-Semitic remark sets off firestorm of criticism

An offhanded, anti-Semitic remark in a Kansas City Call reporter’s private e-mail touched off a flurry of conversations about stereotypes this week among local black and Jewish leaders.

Part of the problem, according to Jewish KCMO Councilwoman Beth Gottstein, stems from confusion about the roles played by Call reporter Eric Wesson, who also functions as a community activist.

Gottstein said her aide got an e-mail Wesson distributed June 11 to various local leaders. In the note, Wesson dealt with the simmering controversy over why D.J. Jazzy Jeff’s June 6 performance at the Power & Light District was cut short.
The offensive line concerned the Cordish Co., which operates the P&L District, and whose dress code has been a bone of contention in the black community.

Prominent members of the Cordish family, which controls the Baltimore-based company, are Jewish, a fact Wesson apparently knows, because he included this line in his e-mail:

“Lastly Cordish like all jews they look at money not black or white.”

A non-apology
That set off a spate of criticism directed at Wesson, who responded by calling, among others, Marvin Szneler, executive director of the Jewish Community Relations Bureau/American Jewish Committee to discuss the matter. Szneler said he tried to impress upon Wesson why references to money-grubbing Jews were offensive.

Wesson then sent out a second e-mail June 12, partially apologizing and partially justifying his original e-mail, which generated more conversation.  (See below.)

Both episodes were covered in posts on the influential local blog, Tony’s Kansas City, generating many reader comments.

As of The Chronicle’s press time this week, several local Jewish leaders were still unhappy about the situation.
“Until we step up and say this is hate speech and it has to stop, no one will step up for us,” said Gottstein.

‘I never understood’
Wesson thinks the matter has been blown up out of proportion to its true importance. And he apologized again to anyone who was offended by his remarks.

“Marvin (Szneler) just said he was offended; he didn’t say why,” Wesson said. “Steve Israelite explained to me that during the period of the Holocaust, the focus of hatred was created and done by people saying that Jewish people controlled the economy and were trying to take over the world.

“I never understood that. I knew there was a Holocaust, but I didn’t know why it happened. Now I have a better understanding of how that could inflame people’s feelings. … But I don’t believe my statement rose to that level.”

Wesson said the vehemence of the public reaction to his offhanded remark revealed “an elephant in the room that nobody wants to talk about when it comes to race.” He said he wishes the public would be as aroused when it comes to combating inner-city crime and violence.

Eric Wesson’s June 12 e-mail

To all this concerns:

On yesterday I responded to an email with comments that were inappropriate in their nature and offensive to people who I consider friends such as Marvin at the Jewish Community Relations Bureau who I spoke with about this matter. For those comments I would like to extended my deepest apologies for the comments to everyone.

My attempt to make the point that everyone who is in business or to provide a service was in business to make money was worded incorrectly. Regardless of whether race, religion or nationality — one is to be in business they are there to make money or provide a service. It was inappropriate for me to single out Jewish people to make that point.

Again I extend my most apologies with to everyone who read that email.

I do not by any means consider myself a racist or anti-anything but foolishness. As of Thursday I had recieved 171 emails text messages and voice mail messages of which at least 168 called the Cordish family racist and connected them to their religion but my point, which I failed to make appropriately, was that no business person looks at the race of a person who buys something from them. No one in business wants to only sell to blacks, whites, Hispanics they want to sell to everyone. If they targeted a particular race they would probably be out of business or make little to no profit. The Cordish family impresses me as being business people. That is all I meant.

So, again I would like to extend my apologies to everyone who read the email it was a lesson in race relations I thank Marvin for and a humbling experience.

I ask that with the same zeal that was used to circulate the other email and post it on blogs that this be afforded the same opportunity.

Eric L. Wesson

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