Latest / Antisemitism Watch / Antisemitism Watch - August 9, 2026, 03 PM Eastern

Transcript

Antisemitism Watch - August 9, 2026, 03 PM Eastern · Antisemitism Watch

• 0:06
  Speaker 1: You're listening to antisemitism. Watch I'm Rachel Adler. Today we're
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: tracking disturbing reports from campuses, the ongoing impact of political
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: rhetoric on Jewish communities, and critical updates on accountability for
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: hate crimes. A new report reveals an alarming prevalence of
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: antisemitism at Canadian universities, with nearly ninety six percent of
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: Jewish students experiencing or witnessing at least one incident in
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: the past year, according to the CBC. The report, which
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: combined surveys of over seventeen zero students, found that antisemitism
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: on these campuses can reasonably be described as systemic. The
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: findings indicate that twenty five percent of perceived incidents involved
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: a professor or teaching assistant. Alleged professor comments included we
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: should kill all Zionists, that Jews belong in Poland, and
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: Hitler was a hero. Student reported being penalized by a
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: professor from mentioning Hamas's sexual assaults during its October twenty
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: twenty three attack, with the professor suggesting she focus instead
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: on Israeli police. Jack Jedwab, president of the Association for
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: Canadian Studies and Metropolis, Institute and principal author of the
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: report stated that antisemitism on Canadian campuses is neither isolated
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: or episodic. It can reasonably be described as systemic. In response,
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: the Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs b NI Brisk
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: Canada and the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center called on
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: university leaders and governments to consider the report and take
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: concrete actions to protect students. Similar incidents are being reported
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: on US campuses as well, with Jewish students describing threats, harassment,
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: and antisemitic slogans, including one instance where a professor allegedly
• 1:52
  Speaker 1: told a student Hitler should have killed all of you.
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: In New York City, a dramatic surge in antisemitic incidents
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: has been reported, including extreme violence and street aggressions against
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: Jewish citizens. The Park East Synagogue, for example, has been
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: the site of violent demonstrations. Critics are lambasting Mayor Zuren
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: Mamdani for not attending the annual parade celebrating Israel's independence,
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: with reporting from Aurora and the ADL suggesting his stance
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: sends a message that Jews can be attacked. The President
• 2:24
  Speaker 1: of Israel has spoken emphatically about the situation The analysis
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: notes that the politically expedient stance of denouncing Israel has
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: migrated to denying its right to exist, a position held
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: by figures in public office whose platforms can translate into
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: violence against Jews. Meanwhile, inflammatory rhetoric from media figures continues
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: to draw scrutiny. A resurfaced clip features streamer Hassen Piker
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: making remarks about destroying the white race and encouraging violence
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: against conservatives. The article notes Piker's connection to Mayor Mamdani
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: and criticizes the Democrat Party for elevating him. In the clip,
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: Piker is heard saying, We're gonna destroy the white race beach.
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: That's what we're here to do. He has also been
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: quoted advocating for political violence, telling viewers they need to
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: be gutting them. The broader political landscape sees candidates aligned
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: with the Democratic Socialists of America or DSSAY gaining traction.
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: The article mentions that despite accusations of antisemitism against the DSSA,
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: some of which are well founded, Mayor Zorin Mamdani won
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: his New York City election with a third of the
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: city's Jews voting for him. It also notes Vermont Senator
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: Bernie Sanders has described Israel's response to the October seventh
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: attacks as genocide. This trend also extends to local politics,
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: with four Lowe's Angels City Council members affiliated with or
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: embracing Dsay philosophy, as reported by The Times. Turning to accountability,
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: Imman Abdul pled guilty on August fifth, twenty twenty five,
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: to aggravated harass as a hate crime. She had incited
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: her Instagram followers to attack Leon M. Goldstein High School
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: for the Sciences, a school attended by Jewish students, with
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: posts including derogatory terms for Jews and Zionists. Under the
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: plea deal with the Brooklyn District Attorney's office, Abdel faces
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: no prison time if she completes twenty counseling sessions. The
• 4:22
  Speaker 1: felony charge will be reduced to a misdemeanor without the
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: hate crime designation. Most Spern, president of United Jewish Teachers,
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: blasted the plea deal as lax, stating it sends a
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: message that hate crimes against the Jewish community and hateful
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: threats made to schools don't matter. Abdol was reportedly a
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: youth organizer for Alexandria Acassio Cortes's campaign, though an AOC
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: spokesperson stated Abdel was never on staff. Globally, reports indicate
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: that the current wave of antisemitism is fundamentally altering Jewish
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: life in Western countries. According to a recent survey mentioned
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: in the analysis, one in three individuals in the US
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: said they were targets of antisemitism, and over half of
• 5:04
  Speaker 1: Jews have changed their behavior out of fear. The analysis
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: attributes this escalation to political and social polarization, hostility in academia,
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: and well funded Israel defamation campaigns by state actors, suggesting
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: we have likely crossed a point of no return and
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: warning of repercussions for Israel's strategic alliances. In related geopolitical developments,
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: Gatestone Institute scrutinizes the actions of countries like Turkey, Katar,
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: and Pakistan. The analysis questions their repeated interventions to mediate
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: for Iran when the regime faces US pressure, suggesting these
• 5:41
  Speaker 1: actions may serve to abort diplomatic processes aimed at curbing
• 5:45
  Speaker 1: Iran's military capabilities. The report notes that Iran chants death
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: to America and death to Israel, but not to these
• 5:52
  Speaker 1: mediating Nations. I'm Rachel Adler. Thank you for listening to
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: Antisemitism Watch. This report was generated with AI assistance and
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: may contain inaccuracies. Please verify important details with primary sources.