John Cusack apologizes for retweeting apparent anti-Semitic cartoon

Actor John Cusack is apologizing for re-tweeting an anti-Semitic cartoon and quotation after defending the post, then deleting it. The image showed a blue Star of David above a hand pushing down on a group of people accompanied by a quote frequently misattributed to the philosopher Voltaire.

The quote, which reads "to learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize," is actually a slightly altered version of Kevin Alfred Strom, whom is considered to be a Neo-Nazi by the Southern Poverty Law Center. The SPLC said Strom has authored anti-Semitic and racist materials. He faced child pornography charges in 2007 and 2008 and served 23 months in prison after entering a guilty plea.

Cusack added, "Follow the money." He initially defended the tweet against social media critics, accusing Israel of atrocities against Palestinians. He then blamed a "bot" for the post before deleting it.

"Made a mistake retweeting that — as I said — and sorry," he later tweeted.

• Israel
• Antisemitism