Jewish groups slam Nugent for anti-Semitic gun control post

(JTA)-Right-wing rocker Ted Nugent came under fire from Jewish groups for a anti-Semitic Facebook post blaming prominent Jews for pushing gun control. The National Rifle Association is also under pressure to distance itself from Nugent, who is a longtime NRA board member.

On Monday, Nugent shared a graphic featuring images of 12 Jews-including former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Democratic New York Sen. Chuck Schumer-branded with images of Israeli flags below the words: "So who is really behind gun control?"

Alongside the graphic, which has previously appeared on anti-Semitic websites, Nugent wrote:

"Know these punks. They hate freedom, they hate good over evil. They would deny us the basic human right to self defense & to KEEP AND BEAR ARMS while many of them have tax-paid hired ARMED security! Know them well. Tell every1 you know how evil they are. Let us raise maximum hell to shut them down!"

Jewish organizations quickly condemned the post.

"Ted Nugent has a long history of being an equal opportunity offender. But his latest share on Facebook, making the outrageous suggestion that Jews are behind gun control, is nothing short of conspiratorial anti-Semitism," said an Anti-Defamation League statement signed by CEO Jonathan Greenblatt.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Wiesenthal Center, said in a statement: "Ted Nugent has every right to advocate against gun control laws. However he won't be getting a free pass for his anti-Semitic bigotry. There are Jews on both sides of the gun control controversy and Nugent knows it. He owes our community an apology. He can start by removing the offensive graphic and if he won't we urge Facebook to do it for him."

In the graphic on Facebook, the Jewish politicians and activists are labeled with descriptions, such as "Jew York City Mayor Mikey Bloomberg" and "Sen. Chucky boy Schumer." Over Emanuel's face, the text reads: "Served in Israel's army during Gulf war."

Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz and U.S. Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein, both California Democrats, are also among those targeted.

Nugent, the voice of 1970s hits like "Stranglehold," is an avid hunter, a board member of the National Rifle Association and a strong supporter of the Republican Party. He has a history of making inflammatory statements.

In response to the recently released Michael Bay film "13 Hours" about the highly politicized attack by Islamist militants on the U.S. Embassy in Benghazi, Libya, Nugent said President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton should be "tried for treason and hung."