Latest / Antisemitism Watch / Antisemitism Watch - August 30, 2026, 05 PM Eastern

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Antisemitism Watch - August 30, 2026, 05 PM 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: monitoring rising security concerns for Jewish communities, political rhetoric surrounding
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  Speaker 1: the upcoming elections, and ongoing discussions about anti-Israel discourse. Authorities
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  Speaker 1: across the United States are urging increased police patrols for
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  Speaker 1: Jewish schools and synagogues ahead of the Jewish High Holy Days,
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  Speaker 1: which begin September 11. This comes amid a significant nationwide
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  Speaker 1: rise in antisemitic hate crimes. According to an Anti-Defamation League analysis,
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  Speaker 1: antisemitic hate crimes accounted for nearly 63% of religion-based hate
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  Speaker 1: crimes nationwide in 2025, representing the third-highest number on record.
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  Speaker 1: In New York City, hate crimes surged 9.4% through July
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  Speaker 1: compared to the same period last year, with more than
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  Speaker 1: half of those incidents targeting Jewish New Yorkers, according to
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  Speaker 1: NYPD statistics. Some Jewish leaders have attributed this rise partly
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  Speaker 1: to New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani's vocal criticism of
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  Speaker 1: Israel and his accusations of genocide during the war in Gaza.
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  Speaker 1: New York Governor Kathy Hochul has pledged increased security for
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  Speaker 1: synagogues and Jewish communities across the state, stating that if
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  Speaker 1: more protection is needed, state police will be sent. Police
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  Speaker 1: Commissioner Jessica Tisch also promised that Jewish institutions would not
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  Speaker 1: be left to protect themselves. Reporting reviewed for this episode
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  Speaker 1: details an attack on a synagogue that injured a security guard,
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  Speaker 1: an incident described as a deliberate targeting of Jewish people.
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  Speaker 1: Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters is warning Jewish Republican
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  Speaker 1: leaders that a Democratic congressional majority would put the Jewish
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  Speaker 1: community at greater risk. According to the New York Post,
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  Speaker 1: Gruters plans to argue that Democratic leaders have failed to
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  Speaker 1: adequately confront antisemitism within their party. and will criticize figures
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  Speaker 1: including New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani, Representatives Ilhan Omar
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  Speaker 1: and Rashida Tlaib, and Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed. Grutter
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  Speaker 1: seeks to make antisemitism and support for Israel's central issues
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  Speaker 1: in the upcoming elections. This political backdrop includes former President
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  Speaker 1: Donald Trump's prior attacks on El-Sayed, whom Trump accused of
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  Speaker 1: hating Jews and Israel. El-Sayed himself issued an apology on
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  Speaker 1: August 29 for comments made following a March synagogue attack.
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  Speaker 1: Speaking to reporters, El-Sayed had referred to the alleged attacker's circumstances, stating,
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  Speaker 1: hurt people hurt people, remarks that critics interpreted as potentially
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  Speaker 1: justifying the violence. El-Sayed apologized, saying his intention was to
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  Speaker 1: offer context, but acknowledged the timing was inappropriate and could
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  Speaker 1: have been hurtful. Separately, reporting indicates that more than a
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  Speaker 1: dozen senators and congressmen have condemned rhetoric from an individual
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  Speaker 1: identified as piker as dangerous and blatantly antisemitic. Marjorie Taylor
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  Speaker 1: Greene has also condemned Laura Loomer's rhetoric, labeling it as
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  Speaker 1: representative of Trump's new MAGA, according to reporting reviewed for
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  Speaker 1: this episode. The legacy of the 2001 Durban Conference continues
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  Speaker 1: to be analyzed as the blueprint for anti-Israel demonization. according
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  Speaker 1: to Gerald Steinberg of NGO Monitor, who stated it restarted
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  Speaker 1: the Zionism is racism campaign and introduced terms like genocide
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  Speaker 1: and apartheid. This rhetoric persists, with reporting reviewed for this episode,
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  Speaker 1: noting frustration when criticisms of Israeli government policy are met
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  Speaker 1: with antisemitism. And Zionist is used as a slur. The
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  Speaker 1: New Jersey branch of CAIR released a back-to-school resource guide,
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  Speaker 1: That suggests the 9-11 terror attacks were due to America's
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  Speaker 1: support of Israel, and notes that terrorism is defined differently
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  Speaker 1: by different groups of people. The Jerusalem Post reported that
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  Speaker 1: while the 9-11 Commission report did cite US support for
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  Speaker 1: Israel as a grievance fueling extremism, it did not state
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  Speaker 1: the attacks were in response to it. Broader analysis indicates
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  Speaker 1: that an unjustified double standard is often applied to Israel,
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  Speaker 1: normalizing anti-Israel prejudice and blurring lines with anti-Semitism. This pattern
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  Speaker 1: was highlighted when Jewish progressive politician Brad Lander, a critic
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  Speaker 1: of Israeli policy, was targeted with insults including Balsak Zionist
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  Speaker 1: and accused of being another paid Zionist while protesting an
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  Speaker 1: RSS event, as reported by the Jerusalem Post. This incident
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  Speaker 1: underscores how even Jewish critics of Israeli government policy can
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  Speaker 1: face anti-Semitic slurs for identifying as Zionist. A Justice Department
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  Speaker 1: whistleblower has claimed that the Trump administration allegedly rigged university
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  Speaker 1: antisemitism investigations using fake evidence, according to reporting reviewed for
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  Speaker 1: this episode. Jewish Canadians have expressed significant interest in relocating
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  Speaker 1: due to safety concerns, harassment and vandalism, as noted in
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  Speaker 1: reporting reviewed for this episode. In response, a coalition of
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  Speaker 1: Christian lawmakers, religious leaders and civic figures including the National
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  Speaker 1: Association of Christian Lawmakers, has asked President Trump to create
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  Speaker 1: an expedited legal pathway for Jewish Canadians seeking to move
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  Speaker 1: to the United States. The coalition cited concerns over harassment, vandalism,
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  Speaker 1: and violence directed at Jewish institutions and families. This initiative
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  Speaker 1: has gained traction, with President Trump amplifying the plan on
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  Speaker 1: his Truth social platform, as reported by Fox News Digital.
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  Speaker 1: The NACL founder has also highlighted a perceived disproportionate rate
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  Speaker 1: of antisemitic incidents in Canada. Compared to the US, the
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  Speaker 1: coalition urged the creation of lawful, secure, and appropriately expedited
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  Speaker 1: pathways for those facing persecution or fearing for their safety.
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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. Thank you.