Washington Councilman Who Made anti-Semitic Remarks Rushes Holocaust Museum Visit

WASHINGTON – A member of Washington's City Council who made anti-semitic comments last month held a private visit to the U.S. Holocaust Museum on Wednesday, accompanied by representatives of the museum and the local Jewish community. According to a report in the Washington Post, the councilman, Trayon White, left midway through his tour of the museum, without presenting a clear explanation.

White came under significant criticism last month after he uploaded a video in which he said that the Rothschild family controlled the weather and caused snow to fall on Washington. He later apologized for spreading this anti-semitic conspiracy theory, and held a number of meetings with leaders of the Jewish community of Washington, in order to learn about anti-semitism.

His visit on Wednesday at the Holocaust Museum was organized with assistance from the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington. Yet 45 minutes after beginning the tour of the museum, which was supposed to last 90 minutes, White stepped out of the museum, claiming that he had an urgent meeting. The Post reported that minutes later, however, he was seen standing in the street and speaking on his phone. An official for the Washington JCRC said White's conduct was "confusing."

White himself said that "“I’ll be coming back to see more of the museum. I didn’t get a chance to see the whole thing. But I think it’s a lot of education here, a lot of synergy here between what happened to the Jewish community and the African community.” He also said that "This opportunity has given me the chance to meet a lot of great Jews, a lot of people. A lot of good Jews that I’ve never had the chance to meet before."