Latest / Antisemitism Watch / Antisemitism Watch - September 26, 2026, 09 AM Eastern

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Antisemitism Watch - September 26, 2026, 09 AM Eastern · Antisemitism Watch

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  Speaker 1: You're listening to Antisemitism Watch. I'm Rachel Adler. Today, we
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  Speaker 1: begin with a stark reminder of the physical dangers facing
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  Speaker 1: Jewish communities, followed by a look at ongoing campus tensions
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  Speaker 1: and critical analysis of antisemitism in public discourse. In Belleville, Ontario,
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  Speaker 1: a violent attack unfolded outside the Sons of Jacob Synagogue
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  Speaker 1: on September 21st, during the holiest day of the Jewish calendar,
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  Speaker 1: Yom Kippur. According to reporting from the Globe and Mail
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  Speaker 1: and the Toronto Sun, a gunman, identified as 29-year-old former
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  Speaker 1: Canadian Armed Forces member Sean Ward, opened fire as congregants
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  Speaker 1: were entering for services. Belleville Police Chief Murray Rodd stated
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  Speaker 1: that the shooter screamed, You are going to die for
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  Speaker 1: the Jews, before opening fire. Const. Jeff Smith, who was
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  Speaker 1: stationed outside, was hit but bravely continued to engage the
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  Speaker 1: gunman for nearly three minutes until a second officer const.
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  Speaker 1: Mike McCurdy arrived. The threat was neutralized but can't. Smith
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  Speaker 1: sustained critical, though stable, gunshot wounds. The gunman, Sean Ward,
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  Speaker 1: died at the scene. Police Chief Rod described the incident
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  Speaker 1: as a deliberate attack directed at members of the Jewish community. Commentators,
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  Speaker 1: as reported by The Globe and Mail, argue this attack
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  Speaker 1: is symptomatic of a broader wave of hate, linking it
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  Speaker 1: to anti-Zionist rhetoric. The Globe and Mail notes that Prime
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  Speaker 1: Minister Mark Carney recently stated over two-thirds of all religion-motivated
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  Speaker 1: hate crimes in Canada last year targeted Jewish Canadians, while
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  Speaker 1: Prime Minister Carney condemned the scourge of antisemitism. In a
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  Speaker 1: recent address, sources like the Toronto Sun criticized his response
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  Speaker 1: to the attack as boilerplate, especially in light of his
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  Speaker 1: government's other actions. The Globe and Mail also highlights that
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  Speaker 1: this incident occurred alongside an online threat made against a
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  Speaker 1: Durham region synagogue over the weekend. and references a government-commissioned
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  Speaker 1: report from last August, which found 95.7% of Jewish students
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  Speaker 1: had experienced or witnessed at least one instance of antisemitism
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  Speaker 1: in the past year. On campuses, tensions persist. At Cornell University,
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  Speaker 1: an event hosted by the Students Not Bombs campaign is
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  Speaker 1: drawing attention as it demands university divestment. Reporting indicates this
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  Speaker 1: is occurring within what is described as an antisemitism crisis,
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  Speaker 1: on campus. In broader public discourse, historian James Loeffler is
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  Speaker 1: addressing urgent questions about antisemitism in America. In a discussion
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  Speaker 1: facilitated by the Haberman Institute for Jewish Studies and Moment magazine, Loeffler,
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  Speaker 1: drawing on his acclaimed new book, Exceptional Hatred, Antisemitism and
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  Speaker 1: the Fight Over Free Speech in Modern America, examines whether
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  Speaker 1: antisemitism is a new phenomenon or deeply woven into history.
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  Speaker 1: He also explores why Jews and Israel often find themselves
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  Speaker 1: at the center of free speech battles and how to
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  Speaker 1: confront hate speech while preserving fundamental freedoms. Loeffler, the Felix
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  Speaker 1: Posen Professor of Jewish History at Johns Hopkins University, previously
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  Speaker 1: received the Rockwell Press Award for Excellence in Commentary on Antisemitism.
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  Speaker 1: I'm Rachel Adler, thank you for listening to 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.