Jairo Roizen Comments on PSTU Leader’s Racism Sentence
The Head of Communications at the Jewish Federation of São Paulo, Jairo Roizen, used his Instagram account to comment on the conviction of José Maria de Almeida, president and founder of the Unified Socialist Workers’ Party (PSTU).
The 4th Federal Criminal Court of São Paulo sentenced José Maria to two years in open regime imprisonment for the crime of racism.
Jairo emphasized that the conviction was due to attacks against Jews, stressing that criticism of the State of Israel does not constitute racism, but attacks on the Jewish community cross the line of legitimate critique. He explained that associating Jews with tragedies such as COVID-19, denying the Holocaust, or portraying the community as an enemy of society is, in practice, the spread of hatred.
In my analysis, I note that many evangelicals and Christians fail to recognize that the same enemies of Israel also turn against Christians. The issue, therefore, is broader and not confined to the Jewish sphere.
According to data from the organization Open Doors, we are witnessing one of the largest persecutions of Christians in history:
More than 388 million Christians face high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith.
- 1 in 7 Christians is persecuted worldwide.
- 1 in 5 Christians is persecuted in Africa.
- 2 in 5 Christians are persecuted in Asia.
Just as antisemitism is growing in various parts of the world, especially in Western countries, persecution of Christians has reached alarming levels. The same political and ideological agenda that promotes hatred against Jews also views Christianity — particularly evangelicals — as an enemy. In Brazil, evangelicals hold significant electoral influence, capable of shaping the course of national politics.
Demographically, Jews represent only 0.2% of the global population, around 15 to 16 million people. Islam, meanwhile, accounts for approximately 25.6% of the world’s population — more than 2 billion Muslims. Driven by high birth rates and a young population, Islam is consolidating itself as one of the most influential religions on the planet.
The global landscape is being reshaped, with left-wing parties and Islamic forces working together to redefine geopolitics.
Video in Portuguese:
