Latest / Antisemitism Watch / Antisemitism Watch - September 21, 2026, 01 PM Eastern

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Antisemitism Watch - September 21, 2026, 01 PM Eastern · Antisemitism Watch

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  Speaker 1: You're listening to Antisemitism Watch. I'm Rachel Adler. Tonight, we
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  Speaker 1: begin with a deeply concerning incident unfolding on Yom Kippur
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  Speaker 1: Eve in Ontario, Canada. A police officer and a civilian
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  Speaker 1: were wounded in an exchange of gunfire Sunday near the
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  Speaker 1: Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville. The province's Special Investigations
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  Speaker 1: Unit has indicated the incident was likely premeditated and could
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  Speaker 1: be considered an act of terrorism. As congregants gathered for
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  Speaker 1: the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, The gunman, identified
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  Speaker 1: as 29-year-old Sean Ward, fired a shotgun at an officer
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  Speaker 1: stationed outside the synagogue. According to witness accounts reported by
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  Speaker 1: the Belleville police, bullets struck nearby buildings and windows, narrowly
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  Speaker 1: missing congregants. The injured officer conceded, Jeff Smith is in
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  Speaker 1: critical but stable condition, while the suspect is hospitalized in
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  Speaker 1: life-threatening condition. Prime Minister Mark Carney condemned the violence, stating
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  Speaker 1: that Jewish people must be able to worship safely. and
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  Speaker 1: Premier Doug Ford called the shooting disgusting. The incident follows
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  Speaker 1: a pattern of violence targeting synagogues previously noted by Prime
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  Speaker 1: Minister Carney. Across the United States, several other incidents underscore
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  Speaker 1: ongoing threats. In Surfside, Florida, a man was arrested and
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  Speaker 1: charged with hate crimes after allegedly making anti-Semitic remarks, punching
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  Speaker 1: and threatening to kill a Jewish individual. Police stated Jordan
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  Speaker 1: Stephen Perrozzo approached the couple on August 16, directing profanity
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  Speaker 1: at them and the Jewish community. In New York, the
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  Speaker 1: NYPD released footage of two suspects who allegedly threw bags
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  Speaker 1: of motor oil at two Orthodox synagogues in Queens on
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  Speaker 1: July 16, causing property damage. Separately, in New Jersey, a
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  Speaker 1: man named Austin Geekler was arrested for spray-painting a swastika
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  Speaker 1: and SS on a building, and for a second vandalism incident,
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  Speaker 1: facing charges of criminal mischief and bias intimidation. Two brothers
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  Speaker 1: in Hornell, New York, Cormac Thomas Banco and Declan Peter Banco,
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  Speaker 1: were charged with hate crimes after allegedly stealing an Israeli
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  Speaker 1: flag from a business and burning it. And federal officials
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  Speaker 1: reported a woman, Jessica Bowie, was charged with providing support
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  Speaker 1: to a terror group for allegedly plotting an ISIS-inspired attack
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  Speaker 1: on the New York state capital. This plot was identified
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  Speaker 1: within reporting that also detailed various anti-Semitic incidents. In Germany...
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  Speaker 1: The far-left Die Linke Party, led by Elif Aralp, has
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  Speaker 1: made history by winning the 2026 Berlin state election, positioning
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  Speaker 1: Aralp to potentially become mayor. However, this victory comes amid
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  Speaker 1: pressure from potential coalition partners, the Social Democrats and Greens,
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  Speaker 1: who are urging Aralp to address allegations of antisemitism within
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  Speaker 1: parts of her party. Some reporting argues these accusations are
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  Speaker 1: politically motivated distractions aimed at delegitimizing the party. rather than
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  Speaker 1: evidence of systemic antisemitism. Iralp has pledged to ensure all residents,
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  Speaker 1: including Jewish people, can feel safe. This development is being
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  Speaker 1: compared to Zoran Mamdani's 2025 New York City mayoral campaign,
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  Speaker 1: with both focusing on affordability issues. We also look at
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  Speaker 1: political associations in the United States. An article critiques Vice
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  Speaker 1: President J.D. Vance for defending his friendship with Tucker Carlson.
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  Speaker 1: who is described as a country's highest-profile promoter of anti-Semitism
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  Speaker 1: due to his rhetoric including Holocaust denial and demonization of
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  Speaker 1: Jewish people. Vance stated he does not believe in guilt
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  Speaker 1: by association. Meanwhile, Marshall Rawson, a Republican candidate for Florida
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  Speaker 1: House District 10, faces scrutiny for attending the 2017 Unite
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  Speaker 1: the Right rally and for his ties to the League
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  Speaker 1: of the South, a group labeled white supremacist by the
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  Speaker 1: Southern Poverty Law Center. On the religious front, leading US
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  Speaker 1: reform Rabbi Amil Hirsch warned in a Yom Kippur sermon
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  Speaker 1: that unhinged, obsessive loathing of Israel is corrupting US values,
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  Speaker 1: and that America will pay a price if Jew hatred spreads.
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  Speaker 1: He urged Jewish voters to support politicians who support us. Finally,
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  Speaker 1: we turn to rhetoric related to the Israel-Palestine conflict that
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  Speaker 1: meets IHRA's criteria for antisemitism. Musician Macklemore was dropped from
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  Speaker 1: Ed Sheeran's tour and prevented from performing at Gillette Stadium
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  Speaker 1: due to his comments. Letters to the editor in response
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  Speaker 1: described his stance as anti-Israel hate speech, and in one instance,
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  Speaker 1: an anti-Semitic rant. The commentary argued that phrases like free
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  Speaker 1: Palestine can mask an anti-Israel agenda and suggested provocations by Hamas.
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  Speaker 1: I'm Rachel Adler, thank you for joining us on 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.