Latest / Antisemitism Watch / Brooklyn Yeshiva Bus Vandalism

Transcript

Brooklyn Yeshiva Bus Vandalism · Antisemitism Watch

• 0:06
  Speaker 1: You're listening to Antisemitism Watch, I'm Rachel Adler. We're launching
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: Antisemitism Watch, Mid-Atlantic, covering New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: the Philadelphia region at clockworkmedia.org.ma. We begin today with a
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: disturbing act of vandalism targeting an Orthodox Jewish school in Brooklyn.
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: Four school buses serving the United Talmudical Academy in Williamsburg
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: were found defaced Monday morning with swastikas and antisemitic graffiti.
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: Reports from the New York Police Department indicate the graffiti
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: included phrases like FK Jews and FK Israel, alongside political
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: slogans such as Free Palestine and America First. The NYPD's
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: Hate Crime Task Force is investigating the incident as a
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: hate crime. This marks the second anti-Semitic incident at the
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: school in recent weeks, following a bomb threat received on
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: October 9, according to reporting from universityherald.com and jfeed.com. New
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: York State Attorney General Letitia James condemned the attack, stating,
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: Antisemitism and hate have no home in New York. City
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: Council member Lincoln Ressler also denounced the vandalism, calling for
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: an end to the decade-long rise in anti-Semitic incidents. Governor
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: Kathy Hochul expressed her dread, saying, No Jewish child and
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: no family should have to live under fear and threats.
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: Mayor Zoran Mamdani affirmed the city's commitment to combating antisemitism.
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: This incident underscores concerns about rising antisemitism in New York City,
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: where police have reported that Jewish residents account for over
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: half of all reported hate-motivated attacks for the first nine
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: months of 2026, according to universityherald.com. Turning to politics, concerns
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: are mounting over rhetoric surrounding the U.S. midterm elections, particularly
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: regarding Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed. El-Sayed has drawn criticism
• 2:01
  Speaker 1: from the Jewish community for statements characterizing Israel's military campaign
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: in Gaza as genocide and describing the Israeli government as
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: being as evil as Hamas, according to jpost.com. He has
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: also repeatedly linked American support for Israel to domestic issues
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: in Michigan, such as the inability to provide affordable schools,
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: health care, and child care. A political advertisement supporting his
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: campaign reportedly blamed USAID to Israel for rising grocery prices. Forward.com
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: reports that El-Sayed has refused to moderate these views and
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: has maintained associations with figures like Hassan Piker, who has
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: been accused of antisemitism. This rhetoric is particularly significant as
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: voters head to the polls for the November 3 midterms,
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: which will shape US policy on Israel, as noted by Haaretz.com
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: and Forward.com. Critics argue that portraying Israel as the cause
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: of America's problems echoes dangerous historical patterns of blaming Jews
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: for societal issues, as detailed in reporting by jpost.com. I'm
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: Rachel Adler, thank you for listening to Antisemitism Watch. For
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: focused coverage from New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and the
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: Philadelphia region, listen to Antisemitism Watch, midatlantic at clockworkmedia.org slash ma.
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: Follow Antisemitism Watch in your podcast app so you don't
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: miss the next update. This report was generated with AI
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: assistance and may contain inaccuracies. Please verify important details with
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: primary sources.