Kerry Kennedy, the sister of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., denounced the Democratic presidential candidate’s recent comments where he baselessly suggested that COVID-19 was “ethnically targeted” to certain races while sparing Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese people.
In a video published by The New York Post of a press event in Manhattan last week, Kennedy said that there was an “argument” that the coronavirus targeted particular groups, a conspiracy theory that drew a slew of outrage in recent days.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been repeatedly criticized for pushing conspiracy theories, including about vaccines.
Kerry Kennedy, the 63-year-old sister of RFK Jr., also blasted her 69-year-old brother when he launched his presidential bid in April.
“I love my brother Bobby, but I do not share or endorse his opinions on many issues, including the COVID pandemic, vaccinations, and the role of social media platforms in policing false information,” she said at the time. “It is also important to note that Bobby’s views are not reflected in or influence the mission or work of our organization.”
“COVID-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people. The people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese,” Kennedy Jr. said at the event. “We don’t know whether it was deliberately targeted or not but there are papers out there that show the racial or ethnic differential and impact.”
“Covid-19 is targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people. The people who are most immune are Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese,” he said, according to the video published by the Post. “We don’t know whether it was deliberately targeted that or not.” An overwhelming portion of American Jews are Ashkenazi Jews, who are descended from Jews who lived in Central and Eastern Europe.
NBC News has not verified the video. In a statement posted to Twitter later in the day, Kennedy defended his remarks, saying they were not anti-Semitic.
