Tiki Barber under fire for 'outrageous' Anne Frank comparison

NFL running back Tiki Barber has come under fire for comparing himself to Holocaust victim Anne Frank.

In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Barber described how he had to go into hiding as media scrutiny grew on him in April 2010 as news of his break-up with his wife and new relationship with a 23-year-old woman emerged.

He told SI that he and his agent, Mark Lepselter, sought refuge in the attic of his agent's house.

"Lep's Jewish," Barber said, "and it was like a reverse Anne Frank thing."

Frank's story became famous in her published journal after she died in a concentration camp during World War II. She hid in an attic before being detected by Nazis.

Lepselter defended Barber in comments to ESPN.

"In a world where nothing surprises me, where things get completely blown out of proportion, this only adds to the list," Lepselter said. "All Tiki was saying to (SI) was he was shedding light on going back to that time when he was literally trapped, so to speak, in my attic for a week. Nothing more, nothing less.

"Let me remind all those who want to make this more than it is: Tiki was a guest of (president) Shimon Peres in Israel five years ago."

Barber hasn't played in the NFL since 2006, when he retired to become a broadcaster. His TV career has fizzled, however, and he announced his intention to return to the NFL next season.

Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, took offense at that he said were "outrageous and perverse" comments by Barber.

"Holocaust trivialization continues to spread and finds new ways and expressions that shock the conscience," Foxman said. "Tiki Barber's personal behavior is his business. But our history and experiences are ours and deserve greater respect than being abused or perverted by Tiki Barber.

"The analogy to Anne Frank is not funny, it is outrageous and perverse. Anne Frank was not hiding voluntarily. Before she perished at age 15 in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, she hid from the Nazis for more than two years, fearing every day for her life. The Frank family's experiences, as recorded in Anne's dairy, are a unique testimonial to the horrors of the Holocaust, and her life should never be debased or degraded by insensitive and offensive analogies."