Latest / Antisemitism Watch / Antisemitism Watch - September 14, 2026, 01 PM Eastern

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Antisemitism Watch - September 14, 2026, 01 PM Eastern · Antisemitism Watch

• 0:06
  Speaker 1: You're listening to Antisemitism Watch. Today, we track a chilling
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  Speaker 1: death threat against a Holocaust survivor in Germany, developments in
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  Speaker 1: the aftermath of a synagogue attack in the UK, and
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  Speaker 1: significant legal actions against hate speech online and on campus.
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  Speaker 1: In Munich, German authorities are investigating a death threat made
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  Speaker 1: against Charlotte Knobloch, the 93-year-old president of the Jewish community
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  Speaker 1: of Munich and Upper Bavaria, and a Holocaust survivor. According
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  Speaker 1: to reporting, the threat was discovered on a park bench
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  Speaker 1: and garbage bin and explicitly referenced the recent election victory
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  Speaker 1: of the AFD party. German media reported the graffiti read,
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  Speaker 1: The AFD has won, tomorrow we will hang Noblock, and
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  Speaker 1: included a star of David. Ambassador Ron Prosser condemned the threat,
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  Speaker 1: calling it disgusting, cowardly, antisemitic, and Bavaria's Commissioner for Jewish Life,
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  Speaker 1: Ludwig Spinell, stated it had crossed every line. Noblock has
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  Speaker 1: cancelled a scheduled public appearance following the incident. In the UK,
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  Speaker 1: the chief coroner overseeing inquests into the deaths of two
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  Speaker 1: men killed in last October's attack on a Manchester synagogue
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  Speaker 1: is recommending a public inquiry. Judge Alexia Duren stated she
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  Speaker 1: will ask the government to convert the inquests into a
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  Speaker 1: public inquiry after being informed that sensitive MI5 material cannot
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  Speaker 1: be heard in open court due to national security concerns.
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  Speaker 1: The attack at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue resulted in
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  Speaker 1: the deaths of Adrian Dalby and Melvin Kravitz. The perpetrator,
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  Speaker 1: Jihad al-Shaimi, drove into the synagogue gates before attacking worshippers
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  Speaker 1: with a knife while wearing a fake suicide belt. Kravitz
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  Speaker 1: died from multiple knife wounds, and Dalby was killed by
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  Speaker 1: police gunfire. In Canada, police have arrested and charged a
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  Speaker 1: 27-year-old man in connection with anti-Semitic social media posts. Simran
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  Speaker 1: Mander of Stoney Creek, Ontario. faces charges including willful promotion
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  Speaker 1: of hatred, willful promotion of antisemitism, and advocating genocide. The
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  Speaker 1: Hamilton Police Hate Crime Unit launched an investigation in July
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  Speaker 1: 2025 into material posted publicly on the social media platform
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  Speaker 1: x slash Twitter. The Hamilton Anti-Racism Resource Center hailed the
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  Speaker 1: charges as an important step toward accountability. The allegations have
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  Speaker 1: not yet been proven in court. On a Canadian campus,
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  Speaker 1: Jewish students at Wilfrid Laurier University discovered mezuzahs on their
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  Speaker 1: residence doors had been smashed and torn down over the
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  Speaker 1: High Holy Days. Hillel Ontario and Stand With Us Canada
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  Speaker 1: condemned the vandalism as antisemitic hatred, stating it is part
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  Speaker 1: of a broader pattern of escalating hostility toward Jewish students
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  Speaker 1: on campuses nationwide, a trend documented in a federal report.
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  Speaker 1: Jay Solomon, CEO of Hillel Ontario, emphasized that Jewish students
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  Speaker 1: have a right to feel safe and express their identity
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  Speaker 1: without fear. Laurier University has stated it is treating the
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  Speaker 1: matter very seriously and the incident is under investigation, with
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  Speaker 1: support available to the affected students. Antisemitic threats are driving
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  Speaker 1: unprecedented costs for Jewish communal security across North America. New
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  Speaker 1: estimates from the Jewish Federations of North America, or JFNA,
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  Speaker 1: reveal that Jewish synagogues, Schools and community centers are now
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  Speaker 1: spending an estimated $ 1. 02 billion annually on security measures, a
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  Speaker 1: record high. This significant expense, JFNA reports, often diverts funds
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  Speaker 1: that could otherwise support essential community programs like education, summer camps,
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  Speaker 1: and elder care. In the United States, the federal government
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  Speaker 1: under the Trump administration has taken actions that impact academic
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  Speaker 1: institutions over issues of antisemitism. Reporting indicates the administration froze
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  Speaker 1: millions in federal funding to universities, including $ 2. 3 billion to
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  Speaker 1: Harvard and $ 584 million to UCLA, alleging a failure to
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  Speaker 1: adequately address antisemitism on campus. While the administration framed these
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  Speaker 1: actions as part of a push to reshape curricula and
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  Speaker 1: promote viewpoint diversity, a federal judge later ruled that the
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  Speaker 1: cancellation of research grants was unlawful. The broader context involves
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  Speaker 1: federal government pressure on university curricula related to race, gender,
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  Speaker 1: and DEI, with academic freedom concerns also raised. As seen
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  Speaker 1: in the case of a West Point climate scientist, suing
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  Speaker 1: after his contract was not renewed following his protest of
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  Speaker 1: teaching restrictions. In political discourse, Abdul El-Sayed faced pointed questions
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  Speaker 1: from CBS's YGIA Jiang on Face the Nation regarding his
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  Speaker 1: relationship with leftist streamer Hassan Piker. While El-Sayed has condemned
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  Speaker 1: anti-Semitism generally, Jiang pressed him on why he had not
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  Speaker 1: directly called out Piker's specific rhetoric, noting concerns from Jewish
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  Speaker 1: voters in Michigan. El-Sayed deflected, stating his interest lay in
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  Speaker 1: addressing issues like grocery prices and health care for Michiganders,
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  Speaker 1: and expressed disinterest in discussing Twitch streamers in California, a
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  Speaker 1: stance Republicans have reportedly used to attack him. Investigations into
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  Speaker 1: major teachers' unions in the U.S., are raising concerns about
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  Speaker 1: their partnerships and curriculum. Reports from the North American Values
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  Speaker 1: Institute and a Senate committee examine the National Education Association
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  Speaker 1: and American Federation of Teachers, documenting extensive financial ties, co-sponsorships,
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  Speaker 1: and political activism with organizations like Rethinking Schools and the
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  Speaker 1: Zin Education Project. The NEA, for instance, has provided significant
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  Speaker 1: funding to Rethinking Schools, and both unions co-sponsor the Zin
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  Speaker 1: Education Project's Teach Truth Day of Action, which includes demands
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  Speaker 1: to teach about Palestine and alleged genocide in Gaza. The
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  Speaker 1: broader concern, according to these reports, is whether these unions
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  Speaker 1: are promoting critical examination of ideas or encouraging students to
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  Speaker 1: participate in specific political causes. A significant trend is emerging
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  Speaker 1: among North American Jews. Increasing immigration to Israel, known as Aliyah,
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  Speaker 1: even from comfortable circumstances. Driven by rising antisemitism in the
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  Speaker 1: US and Canada and a strengthened sense of belonging to Israel,
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  Speaker 1: particularly in the aftermath of the October 7th attacks, more
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  Speaker 1: individuals are choosing to make aliyah. As reported by Wallah,
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  Speaker 1: some emigrants cite feeling like outsiders in their home countries
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  Speaker 1: and a desire to avoid hiding their Jewish identity, with
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  Speaker 1: one individual describing their move as a step towards the
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  Speaker 1: last exile. In the realm of advocacy, The Nexus Project,
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  Speaker 1: which advises U.S. institutions on antisemitism, has launched an advocacy
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  Speaker 1: arm focused on lobbying Congress and the executive branch. The
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  Speaker 1: project's national director, Jonathan Jacoby, has previously stated he does
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  Speaker 1: not believe any definition of antisemitism should be formally adopted,
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  Speaker 1: a stance that contrasts with the ADL's endorsement of the
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  Speaker 1: IHRA working definition. Nexus's Washington director, Kevin Ratchlin, has also
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  Speaker 1: voiced concerns about the IHRA definition being used as an
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  Speaker 1: enforcement mechanism. The project receives funding from sources including the
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  Speaker 1: Open Society Foundations. In the UK, the Campaign Against Antisemitism
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  Speaker 1: has released a documentary detailing what it describes as anti-Semitic
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  Speaker 1: rot within the National Health Service. On the community response front,
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  Speaker 1: a British-Israeli journalist is advising diaspora Jewish communities to adopt
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  Speaker 1: a proactive strategy to combat global antisemitism. Additionally, calls for
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  Speaker 1: solidarity with Jewish communities persist, underscoring the persistent threat of antisemitism,
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  Speaker 1: especially in the context of events like September 11th and
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  Speaker 1: October 7th. I'm Rachel Adler, and this has been Antisemitism Watch.
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  Speaker 1: Follow Antisemitism Watch in your podcast app so you don't
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  Speaker 1: miss the next update. This report was generated with AI
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  Speaker 1: assistance and may contain inaccuracies. Please verify important details with
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  Speaker 1: primary sources.