El-Sayed’s church appearance raises questions about antisemitism, Israel - opinion

An opinion piece by Mike Evans criticizes Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed's appearance at a historic black church in Detroit, arguing that church leadership must address his statements about Israel, which include calling Israel's Gaza campaign genocide and questioning its future as a Jewish state. Evans calls on Bishop J. Drew Sheard to publicly reject antisemitism.

An opinion piece by Mike Evans in The Jerusalem Post criticizes the appearance of Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed at Greater Emmanuel Institutional Church of God in Christ (COGIC) in Detroit, alongside Congressman Jim Clyburn. The article argues that the church's leadership, particularly presiding Bishop J. Drew Sheard, has a responsibility to address El-Sayed's statements about Israel, which include characterizing Israel's military campaign in Gaza as genocide, describing the Israeli government as evil as Hamas, and questioning Israel's future as a Jewish state. Evans draws a parallel between blaming Israel for American economic struggles and historical antisemitic scapegoating, citing a political advertisement by Rebellion PAC that links grocery prices to U.S. support for Israel. The piece calls on COGIC leadership to publicly affirm that antisemitism has no place in the church and to explain why El-Sayed was given a platform without addressing concerns from the Jewish community.