Never Allow Religion or Ethnicity to Serve as a Litmus Test for Supporting a Political candidate

By: Donald V. Watkins

Copyrighted on August 13, 2026

Michigan Senate Nominee Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan (left) and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani (right).

In recent months, I have watched Donald Trump and MAGA World rail against Democrats like Michigan Senate Nominee Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. These Americans are being trashed because of their Muslim faith and/or ethnic heritage.

Meanwhile, Trump and MAGA have gone all-in for Israel, which bribes and/or blackmails American politicians in both major political parties.  In fact, Israel's bribery and blackmail operations have successfully turned America into an “Israel First” nation.

I am a Christian, but I respect all religions, as well as a person’s right to be a non-believer. This is true even when I strongly disagree with some of the tenets of various religions.

For example, Jehovah’s Witness parents object to blood transfusions for their children based on biblical interpretations.  They are willing to let their child die if he/she needs a life-saving blood transfusion.

Jehovah’s Witness parents object to blood transfusions for their children based on biblical interpretations.

In one of the earliest cases in my legal career, I had to obtain an emergency court order for an immediate blood transfusion to save the life of an infant whose Jehovah Witness parents would not approve of this life-saving medical procedure. As the child’s court-appointed guardian, I cursed out the parents and got the court order just in time to save the child’s life.

Within the Jewish faith, Orthodox Jews engage in a ritual in America, Israel, and elsewhere that is unthinkable for me and most Americans. Orthodox Jewish circumcisers called “mohels” suck the penis of male babies in public ceremonies as part of a ritual circumcision procedure called “metzitzah b'peh” (direct oral suction). A mohel uses his mouth to suck blood away from the baby's circumcision wound as part of the circumcision ritual.

Orthodox Jewish circumcisers called “mohels” suck the penis of male babies in public ceremonies as part of a ritual circumcision procedure called “metzitzah b'peh” (direct oral suction).

Public health authorities in New York have documented dozens of cases where infants contracted Neonatal Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 (HSV-1) during this procedure. Some of these babies became seriously ill from metzitzah b'peh. Some developed brain damage, while others have died. There is no proven way to eliminate the risk of HSV-1 infection from direct oral suctioning.

Whether we agree with the tenets of a major religion, or not, they must never serve as a litmus test for supporting a political candidate. The same holds true with respect to a candidate’s ethnicity and how they spell or pronounce their names.

Hating on an American solely because of his/her religious faith, ethnicity, and/or the cultural heritage from which his/her name is derived is plain, old-fashion, bigotry.