Senator John Kennedy ‘Hide Your Head in a Bag’ Remark Sparks Backlash

Senator John Kennedy has sparked a backlash after he told an Arab American activist to “hide [her] head in a bag” during a hearing about hate crimes.

Maya Berry, the founder of the Arab American Institute, appeared before a Senate Judiciary hearing to discuss hate crimes in the country on Tuesday.

Advocacy groups say there has been a surge in hate crimes targeting Muslims, Palestinians and Jews since Hamas‘ attack on Israel on October 7, which triggered Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza that has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians.

During his questioning, Kennedy repeatedly suggested that Berry supported Hamas, the group that has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007, despite her repeated denials. Berry called his line of questioning “extraordinarily disappointing.”

On social media, civil rights groups and others condemned Kennedy’s treatment of Berry and some called for him to face censure.

Newsweek has contacted Kennedy’s office for comment via email. Berry has been contacted for comment via an email to the Arab American Institute.

“You support Hamas, do you not?” Kennedy, a Louisiana Republican, asked Berry.

“Senator, oddly enough, I’m going to say thank you for that question, because it demonstrates the purpose of our hearing today in a very effective way,” she replied, before Kennedy cut her off and asked to respond with a yes or no.

She said: “Hamas is a foreign terrorist organization that I do not support, but you asking the executive director of the Arab American Institute that question very much puts the focus on the issue of hate in our country.”

“I got your answer and I appreciate it[…]You support Hezbollah, too, don’t you?” Kennedy then asked, referring to the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group.

“Again, I find this line of questioning extraordinarily disappointing,” Berry said, before Kennedy cut her off again, noting that his time was limited and pressing her for a yes or no.

“The answer is I don’t support violence, whether it’s Hezbollah or Hamas or any other entity that invokes it, so no, sir,” she said.

Kennedy went on: “You just can’t bring yourself to say no, can you? Do you support or oppose Iran and their hatred of Jews?”

Kennedy then talked over Berry as she attempted to respond. She then said: “As a Muslim woman, sir, I’m going to tell you I do not support Iran.”

Kennedy then noted Berry’s past criticism of Congress for cutting funding to The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA), which provides services to Palestinian refugees amid allegations that some of its workers were involved in the October 7 attack. Berry defended her support for the UNRWA’s relief work.

“Let me ask one more time, you support Hamas, don’t you? You support UNWRA and Hamas, don’t you?” Kennedy asked.

Berry said: “I think it’s exceptionally disappointing that you’re looking at an Arab American witness before you and saying, ‘You support Hamas.’ I do not support Hamas.”

Kennedy interrupted her again, and said: “You know what’s disappointing to me? You can’t bring yourself to say you don’t support UNWRA, you don’t support Hamas, you don’t support Hezbollah and you don’t support Iran. You should hide your head in a bag.”

Kennedy’s comment drew gasps from the audience.

After the exchange, Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin asked Berry if she had anything to say.

“It’s regrettable that I, as I sit here, have experienced the very issue that we’re attempting to deal with today,” she said.

“The introduction of foreign policy is not how we keep Arab Americans or Jewish Americans or Muslim Americans or Black people or Asian Americans, anybody, safe. This has been regrettably a real disappointment, but very much an indication of the danger to our democratic institutions.”

Durbin, a Democrat, was among those who criticized Kennedy for his remarks on social media.

“Political leaders must not fan the flames of hatred and division,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Jewish, Arab, Muslim, and Palestinian Americans *all* deserve to be safe.”

The Judiciary Committee endorsed Berry’s response by sharing it on X, writing: “A Senate Republican told an Arab American civil rights leader that ‘you should hide your head in a bag.’ We will not amplify that horrible clip. But we WILL amplify the witness’s powerful response calling it out.”

Kennedy’s remarks were heavily criticized by rights and advocacy groups.

The Council on American-Relations (CAIR) issued a statement condemning the treatment of Berry by Kennedy and others.

“Maya Berry went before the committee to discuss hate crimes. Both Ms. Berry and the topic should have been treated with the respect and seriousness they deserve,” CAIR’s government affairs director Robert McCaw said. “Instead, Senator Kennedy and others chose to be an example of the bigotry Arabs, Palestinians and Muslims have faced in recent months and years.”

Sheila Katz, the CEO of the National Council of Jewish Women, called the treatment of Berry “heartbreaking.”

The “only Muslim witness faced biased questions about supporting Hamas & Hezbollah despite her clear condemnations,” Katz wrote on X. “This hearing should combat hate, not perpetuate it. The Senate must do better.”

Anthony Romero, the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union, said the group condemned the “discriminatory and vitriolic attack” on Berry.

“To use a hearing about the disturbing rise in anti-Muslim, anti-Arab and antisemitic hate crimes to launch personal and discriminatory attacks on an expert witness they’ve invited to testify is both outrageous and inappropriate,” he said. “This kind of racist rhetoric should be widely condemned. It has no place in Congress, or in politics.”

Some called for Kennedy to face censure.

“Arab, Muslim, Jewish and civil rights groups across the board have condemned @SenJohnKennedy’s flagrantly racist and defamatory attack on a hearing witness yesterday,” Dylan Williams, vice president of government affairs at the Center for International Policy, wrote on X.

“If he does not apologize today, he should face immediate censure by his colleagues for his disgraceful behavior.”

Medea Benjamin, an activist and co-founder of human rights organization Code Pink, wrote that the hearing was “a disgrace. Instead of addressing anti-Muslim, anti-Arab, and anti-Palestine hate, senators like John Kennedy used it to spew hate. He bullied witness Maya Berry and told her to put her head ‘in a bag.’ We demand accountability! The Senate must censure Senator Kennedy for this blatant display of Islamophobia!”

Journalist Mehdi Hasan suggested there would be a bigger outcry if a Democratic senator had made similar remarks to a Jewish leader.

“Imagine, just imagine, if a left-wing Dem senator had asked a Jewish leader testifying about antisemitism if they supported genocide, & then told them to put their head in a bag,” he wrote. “It would be a huge scandal. But it was a Republican & the person was Muslim.”