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Censure issued for Fakih’s antisemitic posts

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By Dana Casadei


After nearly three hours of public comment on Monday, October 14, the Bloomfield Township Board of Trustees voted 6-1 in favor of issuing a censure to trustee Stephanie Fakih for her antisemitic social media posts in early October.


For some who spoke at the meeting, issuing a censure – a formal statement of disapproval – will be enough to get the board of trustees back in their good graces, but for many, it may not be given what she posted on X and Instragram on Friday, October 4. Many in the audience sought her removal or resignation.


Fakih cannot be recalled by citizen vote from office because she’s currently in her last year in the term and the time frame need for such an undertaking would peven it regarldess. The only way she would be able to be removed would be done by the governor, something that a few people did think should happen.


While her social media accounts are now private, and her Facebook and Linked has been taken down, Fakih, who is Lebanese American and currently has family located in Lebanon, wrote that “Israeli zionists are the scum of the earth and the only people on par are American zionists,” as well as referring to 95%+ of Jews globally as “scum.” To follow up these antisemitic posts, Fakih asked her friends and followers on social media to come to her defense at the October 14 board meeting.


Needless to say, her comments did not go over well with her constituents, fellow trustees, and many residents of both Bloomfield Township and beyond. 


Throughout the three hours, those who spoke – numbering over 200 – ranged from rabbis to local community members and teenagers home on fall break from college, to former board of trustees members,  such as former supervisor Leo Savoie and former treasurer Brian Kepes. Each of her fellow trustees also spoke.


There were residents who spoke at the meeting who have lived in the township for barely a year to those who have been in Bloomfield Township for decades, all part of a community that is not only diverse but also home to one of Michigan’s largest Jewish populations. 


“We need you to apologize… why don’t we make a good moment out of this instead of continuing to fight?” said one resident. 


That statement of needing an apology was echoed again and again, not only from those who spoke during the public comment but by Fakih’s fellow trustees, all who seemed shocked that something like this had happened at all in the first place.


Supervisor Dani Walsh even spoke about how when she saw Fakih’s posts she genuinely thought that Fakih's accounts had been hacked, and that this had not been something she would have expected from the person she has sat on the board with for nearly four years. 


Many board members agreed, emphasizing that this situation they had found themselves in was not one they had been in before, even for those like trustee Neal Barnett, who have been on the board of trustees for 21 years. 


“This is the saddest day in my eight years on the board,” said treasurer Michael Schostak, who is the grandson of Holocaust survivors. “There’s no freedom of speech issue here. She has the right to say what she says, but it does not allow her to use hate speech without repercussions.” 


Even though there was much diversity in what was said during the public comments, and remarks from her fellow trustees, it often boiled down to a few things, one being that people just wanted an apology from Fakih for what she had said, another being the hurt these people were feeling by her words, with a few just simply sounding disappointed by her actions more than anything else. 


Others who spoke simply wanted to air their grievances with what Fakih had done, especially after her opening statement at the top of the meeting, during which time the words “I”m sorry” were never spoken, something that was brought up time and time again during public comment. 


“I’ve been watching you all meeting, all I see on your face is a smirk, a smile, a sense of maybe entitlement. I would ask you resign about three minutes from now. You’re a disgrace,” said one man. 


As people gave their comments, many stayed in the room with few leaving, and when one did another would enter. The room was at full capacity and had an additional 40 people waiting in the hall, waiting to state their piece to Fakih and see what the outcome of the meeting would be. There were also 20 local police officers in the room, a metal detector for those wanting to get in, and a police of zero bag tolerance to enter the auditorium. 


The night continued mostly with people being respectful of each other, something that had been asked of them not only by Walsh but by Rev. Stancy F. Adams, Chair, InterFaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit, and a Bloomfield Township resident, who spoke before anyone else, and noted that the basic tenents of many religions is peace and love, and hoped that the community could come back together after this meeting.


“What happens here cannot affect what’s happening 6,000 miles away but we can love each other,” she said.


There were some moments when those in the audience did not follow the guidelines asked of them, especially to those who came to speak in defense of Fakih though, with Walsh having to emphasize continuously during the meeting there should be no booing of what others had to say. 


“I’ve never seen anyone as brave as you… and I’m so sorry there’s no humanity in this room, just bullies,” said one woman who spoke in Fakih’s favor, who did receive backlash from those in the audience during her statement. 


As much tension as there was during the meeting, there were moments – albeit few and far between – where people seemed hopeful that this could be turned around, that healing in Bloomfield Township could happen.


Many who work in prominent positions across the townships at local temples and other Jewish-affiliated organizations offered to meet with Fakih, talk with her, and educate her.  


“Take up those offers from the rabbis, tour the Holocaust center; you have a lot of work to do and I think you’ll be rewarded for it if you do,” one woman said.


Following the over three hours of public comment, Fakih's fellow trustees voted to censure her, a formal statement of severe disapproval in a formal statement. The vote was 6-1, with only Fakih voting against the resolution.


Fakih is completing her first four-year term as a Bloomfield Township trustee, and is not running for re-election on November 5. A Democrat, Fakih unsuccessfully ran in a three-way primary state representative in 2022. Her term ends Monday, November 20.

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