Insurance firm apologises for inviting Linda Sarsour to Middle East heritage event

A US insurance firm has apologised for inviting American-Palestinian activist Linda Sarsour, who has faced allegations of antisemitism, to a company event celebrating Middle Eastern heritage.

Geico said it had “quickly” cancelled the event this week after news of its plans to issue an invitation became public.

The company had come under sustained criticism for the move.

Jonathan Greenblatt, the head of the Anti-Defamation League, said he was shocked that Geico was partnering with “a person who peddles in antisemitic tropes while slandering and delegitimizing Israel”.

StandWithUs director Michael Dickson said that her agenda was “one of extremism and division”,

On Thursday the company tweeted: “We apologise to our employees, customers and others for our initial plan to invite Linda Sarsour to speak at our internal event celebrating Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) Heritage Month. On Tuesday, we quickly cancelled the event.

“GEICO does not condone hatred of any kind, and we do not stand for or with anyone who does. We are not aligned with any form of exclusion.

“We will continue to celebrate MENA Heritage Month in a way that aligns with our values.”

Sarsour, a former leader of the Women’s March movement, has previously been criticised for remarks suggesting liberal American Jews have dual loyalties between the United States and Israel.

She stepped down from the Women’s March in 2019 after refusing to break with the preacher Louis Farrakhan, who has compared Jewish people to termites.