US Health Secretary RFK Jr.: “Arabs Contribute Nothing to Science”

US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a senior figure in the Trump administration, sparked controversy after making remarks about Arabs and Muslims at a Republican rally held Monday in Grand Rapids, Michigan. During his speech, he claimed that hundreds of millions of Arabs contribute nothing to scientific or literary advancement worldwide.

His comments came amid Michigan’s Senate race, in which Republican Mike Rogers is running against Democrat Abdul El-Sayed. Rogers and his allies have sought to link his opponent to the Muslim Brotherhood, while El-Sayed denies any connection to the organization.

Kennedy stated: “Mike Rogers talked about the Muslim Brotherhood. That's a subject I can speak about.” He added: “Talking about the Muslim Brotherhood is not Islamophobia.” He went on to describe those under the organization’s influence as people living inside a “death cult,” which he said is based on an ideology of “martyrdom, murder and genocide.”

He then said: “There are 500 million Arabs in the world. And yet, they don't produce science. They don't win Nobel Prizes. They don't win the Fields Medal. They don't win the Wolf Prize. They don't produce literature.”

According to data from the 2024 American Community Survey, Michigan has the highest percentage of residents of Arab descent in the country, at approximately 2.2%. Newsweek contacted both candidates’ campaigns for comment. Earlier in October, according to The Jerusalem Post, Kennedy deleted a post in which he accused the Muslim Brotherhood of running a global propaganda campaign funded by Qatar.