Katrease Stafford

Detroit Free Press

DETROIT — Rocker Ted Nugent is drawing ire across social media and from prominent Jewish groups after he made an anti-Semitic post on Facebook earlier this week criticizing 12 prominent Jewish Americans he says are responsible for gun control.

The post included thumbnail photos of former Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Harvard professor Alan Dershowitz and several others. Each photo was emblazoned with the Israeli flag.

Nugent, who was born and raised in the Detroit area, is known for his often vitriolic conservative views. In the Feb. 8 post, he called the 12 "punks." He labeled Bloomberg "Jew York City mayor" and said he is a "nanny state trouble maker and 9/11 Israeli agent."

"They hate freedom, they hate good over evil, they would deny us the basic human right to self defense & to KEEP & BEAR ARMS while many of them have tax paid hired ARMED security!" Nugent said. "Know them well. Tell every 1 you know how evil they are. Let us raise maximum hell to shut them down!"

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The post has been shared nearly 4,000 times and has more than 6,000 likes on Facebook. The Anti-Defamation League responded to Nugent's post, telling him he should be "ashamed for promoting anti-Semitic content and demanded him to remove it from Facebook.

"This is nothing short of conspiratorial anti-Semitism," the ADL said. "Regardless of one’s views on gun control, this kind of scapegoating of an entire religious group is completely unacceptable and completely divorced from reality. It should go without saying that anti-Semitism has no place in the gun control debate. ...We hope you will have the good sense to remove this share immediately so that it does not spread virally across the internet."

But not everyone disagrees with Nugent.

One Facebook user who identified himself as Avi Marranazo said he supported Nugent's views.

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"Preach Brother Nugent!" Marranazo said. "They don't trust the peasants with firearms that's why they oppose our right to keep and bear arms."

But another commenter, identified as Fred Rick Friedman, took Nugent to task.

"As owner of one of the largest firearms facilities in the north east, and someone who fights for the 2A every day, you my friend have not helped our cause. ... Are progressive Jews part of the problem when fighting gun control advocates? Absolutely. By adding the Israeli flag to this meme you cross over into anti-Zionist anti-Jew propaganda. That is beneath you Ted. That is beneath the argument for fighting for civil rights — which is part of the 2A. Bad call brother. As someone who has defended you and your fight you have just made it much harder to stand up to those we are fighting against. Another point. Most Israelis are not only pro-American, but many are also very conservative and pro-2A. Big step backwards for you. And just because your dad killed Nazis and saved Jews doesn't give you carte blanch to collectively target all Jews and Israelis and embolden Jew/Israeli haters around the globe."

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Nugent responded to his detractors, stating that "just when you hope that mankind couldn't possibly get any dumber or more dishonest, superfreaks rise to the occasion." Nugent said in a comment on the post that he doesn't "hate jews" but he hates "the enemies of freedom, all gungrabbers."

"What sort of racist prejudiced ... could possibly not know that Jews for gun control are Nazis in disguise?" Nugent said in a separate Facebook post in response to a New York Daily News article about his original post. "...Freaks have plummeted to whole new low. Plummet on punks. Plummet on. Meanwhile I adjust my yamika at my barmitzva playing my kosher guitar. My dad killed Nazis & saved Jews in WWII. Eat me."

Follow Katrease Stafford on Twitter: @KatreaseS_freep