Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller speaks (right) alongside the two guest presenters, Vlad Khaykin (middle) and Jeff Schoep (left) at the "Intersections of Hate" event Wednesday, Jan. 22, at Homewood Public Library. (Summer Kiswani/H-F Chronicle)
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Miller hosts speakers who discuss ‘Intersection of Hate’ at Homewood library

A discussion addressing the harm of hateful ideologies in society took place at the Homewood Public Library Wednesday night. “Intersection of Hate” touched on anti-semitism and general racism, and how to combat them. 

Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller sponsored the two-hour event on Jan. 22. Miller was joined by two speakers, Vlad Khaykin and Jeff Schoep. Khaykin is from the Simon Wiesenthal Center, a Jewish human rights organization. Schoep is the founder of an anti-extremist organization called Beyond Barriers. 

Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller speaks (right) alongside the two guest presenters, Vlad Khaykin (middle) and Jeff Schoep (left) at the "Intersections of Hate" event Wednesday, Jan. 22, at Homewood Public Library. (Summer Kiswani/H-F Chronicle)
Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller speaks (right) alongside the two guest presenters, Vlad Khaykin (middle) and Jeff Schoep (left) at the “Intersections of Hate” event Wednesday, Jan. 22, at Homewood Public Library. (Summer Kiswani/H-F Chronicle)

Both Khaykin and Schoep traveled from out-of-state to attend, and to share their wisdom and insightful experiences with the audience. 

According to Khaykin, anti-semitism did not start with the Holocaust. It has always been an issue in our history, and continues to rise today.

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Khaykin interviewed Schoep, who is a former neo-Nazi leader that turned his life around to advocate against hate. 

Schoep shared the wrongful anti-semitic ideologies that he used to believe in, and that still exists in our society today. 

“There’s a mindset that Jews are master manipulators, and that they control the world and are out to enslave white people,” Schoep said.

Schoep stated how there were even crazy conspiracies of how Jews started the coronavirus pandemic. 

“Hateful ideologies really cause a lot of harm to our society,” he said. 

Khaykin and Schoep also discussed how bigotry and racism goes beyond anti-semitism, and how it affects other groups, especially African Americans. 

When Schoep shared his compelling story to the audience about the people that he had met who influenced him to leave the cult that he was in, he credited an African American man named Daryl Davis. 

“Daryl told me a story of when he was 11 years old and the only black kid in Boy Scouts, and how he was pelted with rocks by white adults. That really bothered me,” said Schoep, adding, “I remember him saying, ‘How can someone hate me when they don’t even know me?’ And that hit me like a ton of bricks.” 

According to Schoep, the key to combating anti-semitism and racism is to change the perspective of those who hold hateful ideologies. 

“You have to try to crack that window open,” Schoep said. Having those conversations and by sharing the struggles of racism to someone who holds hate can tap into their humanity, and make them realize how it’s wrong, he said. 

Khaykin and Schoep emphasized how fostering understanding between groups is the goal when combatting intersections of hate. 

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