US President Donald Trump said early Friday that he didn’t realize the term “Shylock” is considered antisemitic by some people. He had used the word during a rally to criticize certain bankers while discussing his newly passed tax cut and spending legislation, a comment that drew widespread criticism.“I’ve never heard it that way. To me, Shylock is somebody that’s a money lender at high rates,” Trump spoke to reporters after stepping off Air Force One. “I’ve never heard it that way, you view it differently than me. I’ve never heard that.”Trump was heading back to Washington after the event in Iowa that marked the start of nationwide celebrations for the country’s 250th anniversary, which will take place next year.In his speech, he used the word while highlighting parts of the major domestic policy bill that Congress had passed just a few hours earlier.“Think of that: No death tax. No estate tax. No going to the banks and borrowing from, in some cases, a fine banker – and in some cases, Shylocks and bad people,” he said during remarks at an Iowa rally.The term “Shylock” comes from the character in William Shakespeare’s play The Merchant of Venice. In the play, Shylock is a Jewish moneylender known for being harsh and demanding, famously insisting on a “pound of flesh” from a merchant named Antonio if a loan wasn’t repaid.“The term ‘Shylock’ evokes a centuries-old antisemitic trope about Jews and greed that is extremely offensive and dangerous. President Trump’s use of the term is very troubling and irresponsible,” the Anti-Defamation League said in a post on X. “It underscores how lies and conspiracies about Jews remain deeply entrenched in our country. Words from our leaders matter and we expect more from the President of the United States,” the organisation added.US Representative Dan Goldman, a Jewish Democrat, said, “This is blatant and vile antisemitism, and Trump knows exactly what he’s doing.”Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, said in a post on social media, “Shylock is among the most quintessential antisemitic stereotypes. This is not an accident. It follows years in which Trump has normalized antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories – and it’s deeply dangerous.”
