Latest / Antisemitism Watch / Antisemitism Watch - September 24, 2026, 01 PM Eastern

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Antisemitism Watch - September 24, 2026, 01 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: tracking a disturbing range of incidents, from violent acts and
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  Speaker 1: hate-filled rhetoric to campus controversies and political commentary, underscoring the
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  Speaker 1: persistent nature of antisemitism worldwide. We begin with a violent
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  Speaker 1: incident in Belleville, Ontario, where a man identified as Sean
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  Speaker 1: Ward died after exchanging gunfire with police outside the Sons
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  Speaker 1: of Jacob Synagogue on Yom Kippur. According to reports, Ward
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  Speaker 1: was a former corporal in the Canadian Armed Forces, suing
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  Speaker 1: the military over his discharge for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine.
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  Speaker 1: Sources told Global News that Ward had expressed COVID-19 conspiracy
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  Speaker 1: theories and repeated anti-Semitic memes, with one theory blaming the
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  Speaker 1: Jewish community for the pandemic. Police have not commented on
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  Speaker 1: a possible motive for the incident. During the exchange, an
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  Speaker 1: officer const, Jeff Smith, was critically injured but is reported
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  Speaker 1: to be in stable condition. This event occurs amid a
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  Speaker 1: wave of anti-Semitic attacks in Canada, which have included assaults,
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  Speaker 1: threats and shootings, with police disrupting at least four recent
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  Speaker 1: terrorist plots directed at Jews, according to reporting. In New
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  Speaker 1: York City, the NYPD Hate Crimes Division is investigating a
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  Speaker 1: chilling incident from Wednesday morning. Surveillance footage captured a knife-wielding
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  Speaker 1: man chasing a visibly Jewish student while shouting anti-Semitic expletives, including,
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  Speaker 1: Heil F. Ing Hitler. and slashing bicycle tires. The suspect
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  Speaker 1: pursued the student to his doorstep before fleeing. Responders located
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  Speaker 1: and took him into custody. The NYPD has not yet
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  Speaker 1: responded to a request for comment and confirmation. Also in Ontario,
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  Speaker 1: police had previously arrested 19-year-old Alexander Parfit for allegedly uttering
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  Speaker 1: threats online about shooting a synagogue, according to police statements.
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  Speaker 1: On college campuses, concerns persist. At the University of Texas
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  Speaker 1: at Austin, The university Democrats are scheduled to host Twitch
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  Speaker 1: streamer Hassan Piker for a campus talk on September 30th.
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  Speaker 1: Piker has a history of antisemitic statements, reportedly including declarations
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  Speaker 1: that Hamas is a thousand times better than Israel and
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  Speaker 1: that Jewish Americans supporting Israel worsen antisemitism. This comes after
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  Speaker 1: spring 2024 protests where Jewish students reported experiencing antisemitic harassment. Meanwhile,
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  Speaker 1: UC Berkeley is facing criticism for delays in honoring a
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  Speaker 1: legal settlement with Israeli dance scholar Yael Nativ. According to reporting,
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  Speaker 1: the university's civil rights office concluded Nativ was discriminated against
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  Speaker 1: based on her Israeli identity when denied a teaching position
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  Speaker 1: after the October 7th attack. Despite a settlement and an
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  Speaker 1: apology from the chancellor, a promised job offer has been
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  Speaker 1: delayed for months due to what a university spokesperson called
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  Speaker 1: internal miscommunication. Nativ stated her goal is to hold the
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  Speaker 1: university accountable. In Canadian politics, new Democratic Party leader Avi
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  Speaker 1: Lewis has drawn widespread condemnation for a social media post
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  Speaker 1: made on Yom Kippur. Critics allege that Lewis stated Jewish
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  Speaker 1: people failed to do our part to stop an ongoing
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  Speaker 1: genocide in Gaza. Liberal MPs Anthony Housefather and Ben Carr
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  Speaker 1: called the remarks despicable and irresponsible, warning of the dangers
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  Speaker 1: such rhetoric poses to the Jewish community. The Center for
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  Speaker 1: Israel and Jewish Affairs stated that collective portrayals of Jews
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  Speaker 1: as complicit can justify targeting them. Lewis has defended his remarks,
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  Speaker 1: rejecting accusations of blaming Jewish people for Israel's actions. In
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  Speaker 1: New York City, Mayor Zoran Mamdani welcomed Spain's Prime Minister
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  Speaker 1: Pedro Sanchez, who faces accusations of overt anti-Semitism, after his
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  Speaker 1: administration banned Spanish ambassadors from Israel. According to the Jewish
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  Speaker 1: Telegraphic Agency, Antisemitic incidents in Spain rose significantly under Sánchez' s premiership.
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  Speaker 1: Mamdani himself has previously referred to Prime Minister Netanyahu as
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  Speaker 1: a war criminal. In policy and institutional responses, lawmakers in
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  Speaker 1: the Michigan House of Representatives have introduced House Resolution 372,
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  Speaker 1: urging U.S. government support for Israel's statehood and framing the
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  Speaker 1: denial of Israel's right to exist as antisemitism. The resolution
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  Speaker 1: also calls for a review of State Department policies to
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  Speaker 1: ensure they are free from anti-Semitism. In Canada, Ministers Anand
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  Speaker 1: Dasangary and Fraser have presented a progress report on national
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  Speaker 1: commitments to combat anti-Semitism. Separately, Israel's Ambassador to the United Nations,
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  Speaker 1: Danny Danon, announced the formation of a task force on
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  Speaker 1: combating anti-Semitism. Hundreds of Jewish New Yorkers gathered near the
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  Speaker 1: United Nations headquarters in Manhattan this week. Organized by UGA
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  Speaker 1: Federation of New York and the Jewish Community Relations Council
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  Speaker 1: of New York, the rally urged world leaders to take
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  Speaker 1: antisemitic violence seriously and curb its proliferation. Speakers included survivors
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  Speaker 1: of antisemitic hate crimes and interfaith allies, with Anti-Defamation League
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  Speaker 1: CEO Jonathan Greenblatt criticizing what he called deliberate passivity in
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  Speaker 1: the face of antisemitism. The demonstration featured pronounced disagreements among
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  Speaker 1: participants on issues related to Israel, but aimed to ensure
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  Speaker 1: their narrative was not drowned out during the UN General
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  Speaker 1: Assembly week. I'm Rachel Adler, thank you for listening to
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  Speaker 1: Antisemitism Watch. Follow Antisemitism Watch in your podcast app so
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  Speaker 1: you don't miss the next update. This report was generated
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  Speaker 1: with AI assistance and may contain inaccuracies. Please verify important
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  Speaker 1: details with primary sources.