Maryland AG reinstates hate crime commissioner who parroted Hamas talking points, called Oct. 7 attacks 'resistance'

An anti-Israeli activist was suspended from Maryland's new hate crime task force late last month for spewing anti-Semitic vitriol and Hamas propaganda online. The suspension apparently didn't take.

Maryland Democratic Attorney General Anthony Brown reinstated Zainab Chaudry to the Maryland Commission on Hate Crime Response and Prevention Wednesday, noting it had not been within his power to remove her in the first place.

Hate on the hate crime commission

Within hours of Hamas terrorists slaughtering thousands of Israeli civilians and dozens of Americans on Oct. 7, Chaudry attempted to justify the attacks on Facebook, referring to the terror attacks as "the uprising in Palestine." She also stressed to her followers that "when you wake up to read media coverage [of the attacks], keep in mind that they are a people who are illegally occupied."

The hate crime commissioner compared Hamas terrorists to "Ukrainian freedom fighters" in an Oct. 9 post.

In an Oct. 17 post, she juxtaposed a recent photo of the Israeli flag projected onto the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany, with a 1936 image of the gate adorned with the Nazi swastika, writing, "That moment when you become what you hated most."

On Oct. 31, she wrote, "no halloween this year, the horror ISREAL."

"I will never be able to understand how the world summoned up rage for 40 fake Israeli babies while completely turning a blind eye to 3,000 real Palestinian babies," Chaudry wrote in an Oct. 26 Facebook post, drawing on disputed figures provided by the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry.

On Nov. 5, Chaudry posted a meme stating, "The term 'Israel' is now defined in the Urban Dictionary as the act of claiming something that belongs to someone else as if it were your own, akin to theft."

In a Nov. 7 post, she insinuated that Israel provoked the Oct. 7 terror attacks, stating, "inconvenient facts."

Suspension

Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown announced on Nov. 21 that he had suspended Chaudry from the brand-new commission, which has had only one meeting since its formation.

Chaudry was put on the commission to represent the views of CAIR, a radical organization required by Maryland law to have a presence on the commission.

A statement from Brown's office noted that "Ms. Chaudry's posts on her personal social media since October 7, in these very early days, have challenged the Commission's ability to do its work."

The attorney general further called on all members of the commission to "exercise great care in their communications and conduct, considering the duties and responsibilities they assumed when joining the Commission."

Jennifer Donelan, a spokeswoman for Brown's office, indicated "the views and opinions of any individual commission member do not reflect those of either the Maryland Commission on Hate Crime Response and Prevention or the Attorney General," reported WMAR-TV.

Donelan noted that the commission still needs to "develop policies and protocols governing ... the way in which its members engage on the issues that define its mission."

Following her alleged suspension, Chaudry stated on X, "I expect the gaslighting attacks - Zionist hate will never stop my activism. Stay loud, stay strong, fight harder for a FREE PALESTINE."

The Maryland House of Delegates wrote to Brown on Nov. 22 asking that Chaudry not be reinstated, reported WBOC-TV.

"The aggressive antisemitism of this post is unseemly from any decent person but is especially objectionable from someone serving on a commission whose sole purpose is to prevent hate crimes," said the letter.

CAIR, meanwhile, pushed a petition that claimed, "Chaudry's suspension is a blatant act of censorship and a betrayal of the very values that the Hate Crimes Commission is supposed to uphold. Her outspoken criticism of the Israeli government's human rights abuses and her unwavering support for Palestinian rights have made her a target for anti-Muslim extremists, but they should not be allowed to silence her."

Back and unrepentant

Brown announced Wednesday that Chaudry had been reinstated. In his statement, the Democratic attorney general noted that while chair of the commission, he was not legally able to remove a commissioner before the end of their four-year term.

Chaudry's removal allegedly "can only be granted by statute, enacted by the General Assembly and Governor."

Barring such a statute, the Hamas apologist will be permitted to join the commission's other 21 members when it convenes on Dec. 13.

Brown indicated he will, however, distribute draft operating guidelines to members "which include personal communications and how to balance the members' right to freedom of speech and their roles as Commissioners for their review and feedback."

"Once the guidelines are finalized, all Commission members will be expected to comply with them and I fully anticipate they will," said Brown. "We must all put aside our differences, no matter how stark they may seem, and find common ground on ways to respond to and prevent hate crimes in our state."

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