African American activist and Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan says he’s not anti-Semitic, asserting there are “good Jews” and “Satanic Jews,” one week after Facebook banned him from the social media platform.
During a speech on Thursday at a Roman Catholic Church in Chicago, Illinois, Farrakhan said people shouldn't be angry with him if “I stand on God's word.”
He also said that he knows “the truth,” and “separate the good Jews from the Satanic Jews.”
Farrakhan claimed that some Jews have been responsible for promoting child molestation, misogyny, police brutality and sexual assault, among other social ills.
Farrakhan, 85, said those who think he is a hater don't know him and have never had a conversation with him and those who got to know him came to love him.
Farrakhan was invited to speak at the church by the Reverend Michael Pfleger after Facebook banned Farrakhan and several other controversial figures, including conservative journalist and Infowars founder Alex Jones.
The world's argest social networking company said in a statement that Farrakhan had violated its ban on “dangerous individuals.”
Farrakhan said in Thursday's speech that Facebook's claim that he is dangerous is true because what he says can be researched by his listeners.
“Social media you met me tonight. I plead with the rulers, let the truth be taught,” he said.
Some free speech advocates have warned that Facebook's attempts to censor dissent could lead to unintended consequences.
For decades, Farrakhan has been an outspoken opponent of Israel and the widespread influence of Jews in the United States.
In November, Farrakhan made a solidarity trip to Iran, where he told Iranian students that “America has never been a democracy.”
He has blasted US President Donald Trump’s policies in the Middle East, saying the US is trying to create further division between Shias and Sunnis in the region.
Meanwhile, Farrakhan’s eldest son, Louis Farrakhan Jr., died in his sleep Saturday at a family home in Phoenix, Arizona, according to the Nation of Islam and police.
Farrakhan Jr. was 60 and suffered from a heart condition, the organization said in a news release. He was one of nine children of Farrakhan.