Overview
- Charlton Allen, nominated to be general counsel of the Federal Labor Relations Authority, was pressed at a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on Wednesday about a 1996 Carolina Review cover that altered a Jewish candidate’s photo to show horns and a pitchfork.
- Allen said the cover was a "mistake," denied that it was antisemitic, and argued the cartoonist intended a rivalry analogy to UNC’s Blue Devils rather than a religious attack.
- The 1996 cover and article explicitly referenced the subject’s Jewish faith, drew condemnation from the Anti-Defamation League, and prompted a formal censure from the University of North Carolina chancellor, records senators cited during questioning.
- Sen. Ruben Gallego directly displayed the image and characterized the text as a clear appeal to the subject’s faith, and other lawmakers used the exchange to press on the nominee’s judgment and record on discrimination.
- The hearing also featured related testimony about nonprofit security grants and community safety funding, linking the vetting of Allen to broader congressional concern over antisemitic incidents and protections for religious communities.