Elon Musk visits Auschwitz and says, “Tragic That Humans Could Do This…”

Krakow, Poland: Just weeks after igniting a political controversy by embracing an anti-Jewish conspiracy theory, Elon Musk on Monday participated in what he termed an “incredibly moving” visit to Auschwitz and defended his X platform against charges of anti-Semitism.

According to the European Jewish Association, Musk joined EJA chairman Rabbi Menachem Margolin in attending a memorial ceremony at the old Nazi death camp and laying a wreath.

Images of Musk visiting the location showed him carrying his kid.
“That people could do this to other humans was so sad and horrible, and it was quite affecting… At a conference organized by the EJA in neighboring Krakow, southern Poland, Musk said, “It hits you much more in the heart when you see it in person.”

In November, Musk issued an apology after answering a message on the now-defunct Twitter platform X with “the actual truth” in response to criticism that it echoed a conspiracy theory about Jews by white supremacists. Some businesses halted their platform advertisements as a result of his gesture.

Since acquiring X for $44 billion in October 2022, the tech magnate has also been accused of spreading hate speech on the platform.

Musk defended his firm during the event on Monday.

On a panel with US right-wing political journalist Ben Shapiro, he said, “The outside audits that we’ve had done… show that there is the least amount of anti-Semitism on X, if you look at all the other social apps.”

Senior European politicians convened at the symposium “to discuss and find solutions to the astronomical rises in anti-Semitism affecting Europe,” according to the EJA.

Since the Israel-Hamas conflict broke out, “this troubling trend” has been getting worse, according to the group.

The symposium took place just before January 27, which has been designated as Holocaust Memorial Day, which marks the 79th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.

At the camp established by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland between 1940 and 1945, one million European Jews perished together with around 100,000 non-Jews.

During a live broadcast on X in September, Margolin extended an invitation to Musk to visit Auschwitz, saying it would make “a very strong statement” that may help with “the struggle to combat anti-Semitism and Holocaust awareness.”

Musk concurred, saying it may be “helpful… as an example to others”.

Musk identified as “aspirationally Jewish” and mentioned attending Hebrew preschool throughout the conversation.

“It’s absurd to be accused of something when all the evidence points the other direction and my entire life story is in fact pro-semitic,” he said at the time.

Due to the Anti-Defamation League’s (a Jewish advocacy organization) allegations that problematic and racist speech has increased on X after Musk took charge, the group has vowed to sue Musk.

Additionally, X Corp is suing Media Matters, a nonprofit organization, claiming that by depicting the website as being filled with anti-Semitic material, it has scared away sponsors.

A “dialectical hatred against Whites” was promoted by Jewish groups, according to the post that Musk backed in November.

Major sponsors suddenly quit in large numbers as a result of Musk’s backing, and the White House accused him of “abhorrent promotion” of anti-Semitism.

What he subsequently described as “literally the worst and dumbest post that I’ve ever done” prompted the social media giant to issue an apology.

He claimed that it was misunderstood and that he had attempted to clarify the statement in later replies on the forum.

The SpaceX and Tesla entrepreneur visited Israel after the uproar, but he said the trip was not a “apology tour” and had instead been scheduled previously.

The software billionaire was informed by Israel’s President Isaac Herzog that he had “a huge role to play” in battling anti-Semitism.

“We need to fight it together because on the platforms which you lead, unfortunately, there’s a harbouring of a lot of… anti-Semitism,” Herzog said.