Latest / Antisemitism Watch / Antisemitism Watch - August 22, 2026, 09 AM Eastern

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Antisemitism Watch - August 22, 2026, 09 AM Eastern · Antisemitism Watch

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  Speaker 1: You're listening to Antisemitism Watch. I'm Rachel Adler. Today we're
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  Speaker 1: tracking a disturbing rise in antisemitic incidents in New York
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  Speaker 1: City schools and examining controversial rhetoric from public figures. A
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  Speaker 1: new report from United Jewish Teachers highlights a persistent pattern
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  Speaker 1: of hostility in New York City's public schools, documenting at
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  Speaker 1: least two hundred and fifty antisemitic and anti Israel incidents
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  Speaker 1: since the October seventh Hamas attacks. According to the report,
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  Speaker 1: these incidents have continued to rise since Mayor's or and
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  Speaker 1: Mamdani took office in January twenty twenty six. Mosch Spern,
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  Speaker 1: president of United Jewish Teachers, told Washington Watch that since
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  Speaker 1: October seventh, students and teachers have faced open hostility, with
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  Speaker 1: a notable uptick in incidents occurring after Mamdani's tenure began.
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  Speaker 1: The incidents compiled include direct acts of harassment, vandalism, threat
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  Speaker 1: as well as biased curriculum and disruptive events. Spern pointed
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  Speaker 1: to the borough of Brooklyn, home to a large Jewish population,
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  Speaker 1: as seeing the highest number of attacks on Jewish teachers
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  Speaker 1: and students. The report and Spern link this rise to
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  Speaker 1: Mayor Mamdani's actions, including overturning a previous executive order that
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  Speaker 1: had instituted the IHRA definition of antisemitism and rolling back
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  Speaker 1: a directive prohibiting city employees from participating in the boycott,
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  Speaker 1: Divestment and Sanctions BDS movement against Israel. According to reporting
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  Speaker 1: cited by United Jewish Teachers, Mamdani has also stated he
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  Speaker 1: opposes Israel because he does not recognize any state's right
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  Speaker 1: to exist with a system of hierarchy on the basis
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  Speaker 1: of race or religion. Spyern also noted Mamdani's recent statements
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  Speaker 1: accusing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netaniahu of being a war
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  Speaker 1: criminal and the architect of a horrific genocide in Gaza.
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  Speaker 1: This rhetoric and these policies have fueled significant controversy, particularly
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  Speaker 1: surrounding Mayor Mamdani's potential attendants at the upcoming twenty fifth
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  Speaker 1: anniversary commemoration of the September eleventh attacks. Reporting indicates strong
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  Speaker 1: opposition from families of nine Slash eleven victims and New
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  Speaker 1: Yorkers due to what is described as his blatant antisemitism.
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  Speaker 1: Specific criticisms cited include his refusal to appoint any Jewish
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  Speaker 1: individuals to the Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary, despite
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  Speaker 1: Jews making up ten percent of the city's population and
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  Speaker 1: a large portion of the legal field. His past support
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  Speaker 1: for the BDS movement and his statement that any state
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  Speaker 1: that privileges one religion over the other is one that
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  Speaker 1: I can't tell you I support are also cited as
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  Speaker 1: reasons for concern. The article further details Mamdani's past condemnation
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  Speaker 1: of the NYPD and notes he was previously booed off
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  Speaker 1: stage by police and police families. These actions and statements,
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  Speaker 1: according to critics, have created an environment where antisemitism is emboldened.
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  Speaker 1: In other developments, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New
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  Speaker 1: York is preparing an exhibition titled John Galliano Horizons, dedicated
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  Speaker 1: to the designer's forty year career. The exhibition will not
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  Speaker 1: only explore his influence on fashion, but will also confront
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  Speaker 1: his past antisemitic and racist remarks. Galliano's career was significantly
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  Speaker 1: impacted in twenty eleven after a video surfaced of him
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  Speaker 1: making an antisemitic tirade. He was subsequently dismissed from Diore
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  Speaker 1: and found guilty in court for making public insults on religious, racial,
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  Speaker 1: or ethnic grounds, receiving a suspended fine. Following treatment for addiction,
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  Speaker 1: Galliano has reportedly begun studying the history of antisemitism and
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  Speaker 1: the Holocaust, and has met with Rabbi Bari Marcus and
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  Speaker 1: a concentration camp survivor. Nate Wolfson, communications director for Nexus Project,
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  Speaker 1: emphasized the museum's responsibility to genuinely confront the harm caused
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  Speaker 1: by Galliano's words, alongside his creative achievements and his subsequent
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  Speaker 1: efforts toward reconciliation. Curator Andrew Bolton plans to give this
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  Speaker 1: turning point in Galliano's biography a prominent place in the
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  Speaker 1: exhibition's introductory section, offering the museum a chance to demonstrate
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  Speaker 1: how to address the challenging chapters of an important figure's history.
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  Speaker 1: I'm Rachel Adler. Thank you for listening to Antisemitism Watch.
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  Speaker 1: This report was generated with AI assistance and may contain inaccuracies.
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  Speaker 1: Please verify important details with primary sources.