Billionaire Elon Musk’s hand gesture as he spoke at US President Donald Trump’s inauguration sparked online comparisons to a Nazi salute on Monday, but a leading tracker of anti-Semitism said it appeared to represent a moment of enthusiasm instead.
Musk dismissed criticism of the hand gesture as a “tired” attack.
Musk took the stage at Capital One Arena in Washington to huge cheers, waved his arms and shouted “yes.”
“This was not an ordinary victory. It was a crossroads in the path of human civilization,” he said. “This is really important. Thank you for making this happen! Thank you.”
He bit his lower lip, stroked his right hand over his heart, fingers spread wide, then extended his right arm outward, emphatically, at an upward angle, palm down, fingers together. Then he turned and made the same hand gesture to the crowd behind him.
After he finished his gesture, he said, “My heart is with you. Thanks to you, the future of civilization has become secure.”
The gestures were quickly scanned online.
“Did Elon Musk Sage Hill at Trump’s Inauguration?” The Jerusalem Post asked.
The Anti-Defamation League, which tracks anti-Semitism, disagreed.
“It appears that @elonmusk made a strange gesture in a moment of excitement, not a Nazi salute, but again, we appreciate people are on edge,” she posted on Monday.
“Very annoying”
In Germany, the head of the Jewish community in Munich and Upper Bavaria, Charlotte Knobloch, described this gesture as “extremely disturbing.”
“What is most troubling are Elon Musk’s political positions, his offensive interference in the German parliamentary election campaign and his support for a party whose anti-democratic goals should be under no illusions,” she said in a statement.
Musk has supported the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), an anti-immigration and anti-Islam party that German security services have described as a far-right party, in the upcoming national elections. He hosted a broadcast with the party leader on his social media platform Earlier this month.
“Honestly, they need better dirty tricks,” Musk said on his social media platform
Shortly after his speech, Musk posted a video on Fox of portions of his speech on Show X, which cut off from the stage when he made the first gesture while facing the cameras. “The future is so exciting,” he wrote above it.
A Trump spokesman did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Some X users defended Musk, claiming Musk was expressing “my heart is with you” and criticizing posts that suggested otherwise.
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