THAT TIKTOK GIRL ON A TRAIN

Published: March 9, 2024

Ethan said how he saw a TikTok with a girl on a train being anti-Semitic toward a group of Orthodox Jews. This is how he recounted it:

"I saw this TikTok that blew my fucking mind. This girl, she's on a train in New York and she's like: "I saw these Orthodox Jews on the train and the first thing I thought was: Are they Zionists? Get the fuck away from me!", like, bitch, you hate Jewish people. And that had like 160,000 likes on TikTok, so what am I supposed to think as a Jewish person, when this is a celebrated opinion, to be on a train with Jewish people and your first thought is "Get the fuck away from me!"?"
After Dark #139


"She has absolutely expressed anti-Semitic views. Dude, she literally said "Get away from me" to a group. That's the definition of racism. If that's not it, then that doesn't exist in this world. She looked at people of a specific identity and said "Get the fuck away from me" without knowing a single goddamn thing about them."
After Dark #139

We noticed the story changed from the girl only thinking it to her literally saying it out loud. We think it's a really bad portrayal and takeaway of the video regardless, but especially in the second case.

The video was that of a Jewish girl bawling her eyes out. Despite calling her names, Ethan was at least courteous enough to not name her, so we won't either. This is what she actually said:

"The feelings that I have towards my own community, towards the Jewish community... God, it makes me feel... I was on the train yesterday, on the way to JFK to get on the plane, and there was a group of Orthodox Jews in front of me. And my first thought was: "I wonder. I wonder if they are in support of this imperialist, colonizer, settler state that is Israel, and I wonder if they're in support of this occupation and this genocide." and then I immediately just, I wanted just, like: "Stay the fuck away from me! Get away from me!". And I'm afraid to tell this to the internet. I don't want other Jewish people to think that I hate them, because that is not, it's not the case. I'm trying to explain that I have lost so much faith in my own community."

Not only did she make clear not to hate Jewish people, but she was clearly in distress and struggling with the fact she had those self-admitted anti-Semitic thoughts, being anything but proud, defensive or celebratory about it. The part quoted, making for about a fourth of the video, was the only time she mentioned anything or anyone religious. The rest of the video was her further criticizing support for the state of Israel.

Someone being honest and vulnerable, openly saying what equates to "I'm afraid to tell you this, but I had anti-Semitic thoughts pop up in my mind upon seeing a group of people belonging to my own community" doesn't at all warrant an interpretation or reaction of "Bitch, you hate Jewish people".