Latest / Antisemitism Watch / Antisemitism Watch - August 29, 2026, 05 PM Eastern

Transcript

Antisemitism Watch - August 29, 2026, 05 PM Eastern · Antisemitism Watch

• 0:06
  Speaker 1: You're listening to Antisemitism Watch. I'm Rachel Adler. In Australia,
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: the Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion has concluded
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: its public hearings. The inquiry, which ran for over 60
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: days and heard from more than 340 witnesses, was established
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: following a deadly terror attack on December 14, 2025, that
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: killed 15 people and injured dozens more at Bondi Beach.
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: According to ABC News, The head of legal for the
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: Executive Council of Australian Jury, Simone Abel, described the moment
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: as significant for the community, with hopes for reform. Peter Wertheim,
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: co-CEO of ECAJ, noted the sheer volume, extent and seriousness
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: of the antisemitism, presented through lived experience testimony, stating that
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: many warnings from the Jewish community had not been heeded,
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: leading to negative outcomes for the country. the world of
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: politics and media continues to grapple with antisemitic rhetoric. Twitch personality,
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: Hassan Piker, told millions of followers that US Jews have
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: it coming and may face action, a statement analyzed as
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: antisemitic incitement. As detailed in reporting reviewed for this episode,
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: Piker also stated that Israel is Jewish ISIS and that
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: Jews were making antisemitism worse. This rhetoric has drawn significant criticism.
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: particularly concerning Piker's past association with Michigan Democratic Senate nominee,
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: Abdul El-Sayed. On MSNOW, host Katie Tour pressed El-Sayed on
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: his ties to Piker, with El-Sayed attempting to pivot to
• 1:40
  Speaker 1: campaign issues. Jason Rance reported on criticism that Democrats campaigned
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: with Piker during primaries, only condemning his remarks after election victories. Furthermore,
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: Candace Owens was reportedly fired due to her anti-Semitic rhetoric
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: against Ben Shapiro. according to reporting reviewed for this episode.
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: In the arts and culture sphere, organizers of the Met
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: Gala are reportedly considering altering the date of the 2027
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: event amid backlash over plans to honor John Galliano, whose
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: past anti-Semitic remarks led to his firing from Dior in 2011,
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: according to the New York Times. In separate commentary, a
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: remark about a synagogue attack was clarified to be against
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: American Jews. prompting an apology and reaction from Senator Cory Booker.
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: According to reporting reviewed for this episode, in New Orleans,
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: a bomb threat was reported outside the Caesars Superdome during
• 2:34
  Speaker 1: a concert by Yee, formerly known as Can I West?
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: The event was attended by over 65,000 people, proceeding despite
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: backlash over the rapper's antisemitic statements and concerns from Jewish
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: community leaders. These leaders had sought assurances from venue management,
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: Legends Global, that antisemitic content and merchandise would be restricted
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: and received assurances that contractual requirements were in place. The
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: New Orleans Police Department responded to the threat, stating that
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: no bombs or suspect were found, according to ABC News.
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: Regarding anti-Zionist rhetoric that meets IHRA criteria, police in Basel, Switzerland,
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: denied approval for a planned death to Zionism protest. According
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: to local police statements, The demonstration was not authorized due
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: to a lack of permit and explicit calls for violence,
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: which they stated exceeded the limits of freedom of expression
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: and assembly. The protest was planned to mark the anniversary
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: of the first Zionist Congress in Basel. In legal news,
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: a federal judge in California ruled that the U.S. government
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: unconstitutionally threatened deportation to silence non-citizen students criticizing Israel's war
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: in Gaza, citing foundational First Amendment rights, the judge stated
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: these tactics created a chilling effect on speech. Meanwhile, Michigan
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: Attorney General Dana Nessel, who is Jewish, warned her party
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: that its embrace of far-left critics of Israel and allowance
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: of rhetoric perceived as anti-Semitic were alienating Jewish Democrats. Nessel
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: expressed fears of being harassed for her support of Israel
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: at party events, according to The Atlantic's David from Show
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: and Reporting Reviewed for this episode. Finally, in community response,
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed apologized to Jewish Democrats
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: for his earlier remarks following a March attack on a
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: synagogue near Detroit. Addressing the Michigan Democratic Jewish Caucus at
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: the state party's convention, El-Sayed stated that his comment, hurt
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: people hurt people, might have been misconstrued as justifying violence,
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: which he said was not his intention. He acknowledged that
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: while he had condemned the attack, it was not the
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: appropriate time for context. and he did not want to
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: diminish anyone's pain, according to CNN and other reporting reviewed
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: for this episode. I'm Rachel Adler, thank you for listening
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: to Antisemitism Watch. This report was generated with AI assistance
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: and may contain inaccuracies. Please verify important details with primary sources.