Health Secretary Kennedy says Arabs 'don't produce science' at a Michigan Republican campaign event
Discussing the Muslim Brotherhood, Kennedy also said Arabs don't win Nobel, Fields or Wolf prizes. The Council on American-Islamic Relations called for him to be fired.
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spoke at a Republican campaign event in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Monday. Newsweek and The Daily Wire report he appeared with nominee Mike Rogers and John James, the Republican candidate for governor. Rogers faces Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, who has denied ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and disavowed it.
Kennedy was discussing that group, which he said began in 1928. He said talking about it is not Islamophobia. Newsweek, The Independent, The Guardian and HuffPost report he also said there are 500 million Arabs and "they don't produce science," do not win the Nobel, Fields or Wolf prizes, and do not produce literature.
Newsweek, The Independent and HuffPost note that Arabs have won Nobel prizes, including Egyptians Ahmed Zewail in Chemistry in 1999 and Naguib Mahfouz in Literature in 1988. The Independent and HuffPost report that the Council on American-Islamic Relations called for Kennedy to be removed. The Guardian reports criticism from Democratic Rep. Hillary Scholten and Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut.
Earlier that day, according to Newsweek and The Independent, Kennedy visited Corewell Health to discuss hospital food. The Daily Wire focuses on his remarks about the Brotherhood and on Jewish and Christian populations in the Middle East.
Three sides of the story
Liberal4 outlets
Left-leaning outlets lead with Kennedy's remark about Arabs and describe it as false and bigoted. The Independent's headline uses "blatant bigotry," The Guardian's headline quotes a "wildly racist tirade," and The New York Times headline calls the remarks bigoted.
The Guardian cites an Associated Press fact check saying Arabs have won, or been shortlisted for, those awards in recent years. HuffPost and The Independent list Arab laureates. The Independent, The Guardian and HuffPost quote the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
The Independent adds the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee and scientist Peter Hotez. HuffPost quotes Brad Woodhouse, president of Protect Our Care. The Guardian adds Democratic Rep. Hillary Scholten and Sen. Chris Murphy, and places the remarks alongside attacks on El-Sayed by Trump and Vice President JD Vance.
It also notes that Rogers said in 2012 the US should talk with the Brotherhood. The Independent and The Guardian note El-Sayed's denials. These outlets give less space to Kennedy's remarks on Jewish and Christian populations.
Center2 outlets
Newsweek reports the remarks at the Grand Rapids rally and quotes Kennedy saying talking about the Muslim Brotherhood "is not Islamophobia." It then gives the 500 million Arabs passage. It says Nobel Prize records contradict his claim, naming Zewail, Mahfouz and Tawakkol Karman.
It adds background on the Senate race: Rogers raising the Brotherhood at the October 21 debate, El-Sayed's disavowal, and Rogers's Sunday appearance on Meet the Press. It notes Michigan's share of residents reporting Arab ancestry, about 2.2 percent. It also describes Kennedy's earlier Corewell Health visit and a hospital-food pledge.
Newsweek says it asked the Rogers and El-Sayed campaigns for comment and that an AI assistant helped produce the story. The Hill reports that Kennedy is facing backlash for comments about Arabs at a Michigan campaign stop. Its headline says he was rebuked for a derogatory claim.
Conservative1 outlet
The Daily Wire presents the speech as a forceful address on the Muslim Brotherhood. It stresses Kennedy's statement that criticizing the group is "not Islamophobia" and his description of its ideology as "very, very dangerous." It quotes his claim that the group's worst victims are Palestinians and people in countries it has taken over.
It also gives his figures on declining Jewish and Christian populations in Arab countries, including 950,000 Jews in 1948 and a Christian share falling from 20% to 4%. It relays his description of an Islamic "Golden Age" and his claim that Islamism ended it. The outlet refers to El-Sayed's "ties" to the Brotherhood and says he supported the group's actions in Egypt in the past.
Its report does not include the lines about science, the Nobel Prize or literature, or the criticism that followed.
Which side made the stronger case?
All sources: 7 articles from 7 outlets
Liberal (4)
- HuffPost: RFK Jr. Got Super-Duper Racist In Michigan Last Night
- The Guardian (US): RFK Jr assailed over ‘wildly racist tirade’ about Arabs at Michigan campaign stop
- The Independent (US): RFK Jr accused of ‘blatant bigotry’ after claiming Arabs ‘don’t produce science or literature’
Center (2)
- Newsweek: RFK Jr. Says 500M Arabs ‘Don’t Produce Science’ at Michigan Rally
- The Hill: RFK Jr. rebuked for derogatory claim about 'Arabs in the world'
Conservative (1)
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