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ADL head explains antisemitism as guest on hip-hop radio show ‘The Breakfast Club’
(New York Jewish Week) — Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt was a guest on the popular New York radio show The Breakfast Club on Wednesday, discussing the recent rise in antisemitism and the need to repair Black and Jewish relations.
“I believe you call people in before you call people out,” Greenblatt said, explaining to hosts Charlamagne Tha God and DJ Envy how he responds to antisemites. “I don’t believe in cancel culture, I believe in counsel culture.”
Greenblatt’s hour-long appearance was intended “to engage with different communities and learn from each other to prevent hatred from spreading,” according to an ADL spokesperson. The Breakfast Club, which originates at New York’s WWPR-FM (Power 105.1) and is syndicated nationally, has over 8 million listeners a month — more than half of them Black — according to Nielsen data. Its YouTube channel has over five million subscribers.
His appearance came after a period in which rapper Kanye West made headlines by spewing antisemitic comments and Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving promoted an antisemitic film.
“With antisemitism rising to unprecedented levels in the United States, and antisemitic conspiracy theories being normalized in high-profile ways, it is increasingly urgent to have thoughtful, in-depth conversations that are accessible to large, diverse audiences,” the ADL spokesperson added.
The on-air conversation that ensued was a sometimes tense but largely illuminating dialogue on the relationship between the Jewish and Black community.
@adl_national discusses the origin of how the #ADL came to be. Tap in
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— The Breakfast Club (@breakfastclubam) December 7, 2022
Early on in the program, Charlamagne Tha God — who in 2020 was criticized by Greenblatt for saying that “Jews have the power” — called out the ADL, saying that the organization “doesn’t have the same passion for anti-Blackness as it does antisemitism.”
Greenblatt responded that the organization was created “to protect Jewish people.”
“That’s why we exist,” Greenblatt said. “And so, at a time when antisemitism has literally reached an all time high, we’re putting a lot of resources on that.”
He added that those resources are going toward fighting extremists who “want to kill Black people and Jewish people.”
“These right-wing extremists, they’re the ones who are rejoicing, while they proceed, Black and Jewish people are fighting,” Greenblatt said. “They’re the ones who want to see Kanye and the ADL, or Charlemagne and whomever going at it, because they deeply, passionately hate both of us.”
Charlamagne also asked Greenblatt about the Black Hebrew Israelites, a religious sect whose members recently marched outside of Barclays Center in support of Irving. (In the aftermath of Irving’s tweet, the ADL attempted to work with Irving — who initially donated $500,000 to the organization — but the organization did not accept the donation after he did not apologize for his actions in a press conference.)
“They would say y’all aren’t Jews?” Charlamagne said. “They would say white people are not the original Jews?”
Greenblatt responded, pointing to an attack by two Black Hebrew Israelites on a New Jersey kosher grocery store which left six people dead in December 2019. “You’re entitled to believe whatever you want,” Greenblatt responded, “but I think we need to recognize that rhetoric can have real-world consequences.”
One such “consequence” is an explosion of antisemitic and hateful statements on the YouTube post of the show. While a few online commentators praised Greenblatt’s appearance on the show (“the conversation was all love”), the majority were less charitable.
“What this year taught me is that with The Tribe you need to act like you are literally in the presence of Darth Vader,” one comment said.
“I’m all for unity — unity in agreeing to kick Greenblatt and his fellow rats at the ADL out of this country,” another wrote.
“This guy proves Ye was right about everything,” another said, referring to West, who recently told conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on his Infowars program that “I like Hitler.”
The ADL spokesperson said not to “put much credence into what people are saying in the comments section on social media.”
“We absolutely have heard much positive feedback from Jonathan’s appearance,” the spokesperson added. “Antisemites, bigots and haters routinely come after us no matter what platform we are engaging on, and we refuse to let a fear of reactions from antisemites and others prevent us from doing the important work of combating hate. If we did listen, the antisemites would win.”
The ADL does have a relationship with multiple Black civil rights and justice reform groups including the NAACP and the Urban League.
“In all my offices, we’re working with Black-led organizations to fight anti-Black racism, to be a part of legislation, to be a part of initiatives,” Greenblatt said on the program.
The ADL has a controversial history in progressive spaces. Dozens of prominent organizations, including many Jewish ones, have signed an open letter called “Drop The ADL” which says the organization “has a history and ongoing pattern of attacking social justice movements.” At the same time, right-wing groups have attacked the ADL for promoting “far-left” ideas and prioritizing “marginalized communities” over Jewish community issues.
The Breakfast Club did not respond to a request for comment.
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The post ADL head explains antisemitism as guest on hip-hop radio show ‘The Breakfast Club’ appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Trump Confirms Conversation with Venezuela’s Maduro
Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro holds Simon Bolivar’s sword as he addresses members of the armed forces, Bolivarian Militia, police, and civilians during a rally against a possible escalation of US actions toward the country, at Fort Tiuna military base in Caracas, Venezuela, November 25, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria
US President Donald Trump confirmed on Sunday that he had spoken with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, but did not provide details on what the two leaders discussed.
“I don’t want to comment on it. The answer is yes,” Trump said when asked if he had spoken with Maduro. He was speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One.
The New York Times first reported Trump had spoken with Maduro earlier this month and discussed a possible meeting between them in the United States.
“I wouldn’t say it went well or badly, it was a phone call,” Trump said regarding the conversation.
The revelation of the phone call comes as Trump continues to use bellicose rhetoric regarding Venezuela, while also entertaining the possibility of diplomacy.
On Saturday, Trump said the airspace above and surrounding Venezuela should be considered “closed in its entirety,” but gave no further details, stirring anxiety and confusion in Caracas as his administration ramps up pressure on Maduro’s government.
When asked whether his airspace comments meant strikes against Venezuela were imminent, Trump said: “Don’t read anything into it.”
The Trump administration has been weighing Venezuela-related options to combat what it has portrayed as Maduro’s role in supplying illegal drugs that have killed Americans. The socialist Venezuelan president has denied having any links to the illegal drug trade.
Reuters has reported the options under US consideration include an attempt to overthrow Maduro, and that the US military is poised for a new phase of operations after a massive military buildup in the Caribbean and nearly three months of strikes on suspected drug boats off Venezuela’s coast.
Human rights groups have condemned the strikes as illegal extrajudicial killings of civilians, and some US allies have expressed growing concerns that Washington may be violating international law.
Trump said he would look into whether the US military had carried out a second strike in the Caribbean that killed survivors during a September operation, adding he would not have wanted such a strike.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the strikes are lawful but are intended to be “lethal.”
Trump told military service members last week the US would “very soon” begin land operations to stop suspected Venezuelan drug traffickers.
Maduro and senior members of his administration have not commented on the call. Asked about it on Sunday, Jorge Rodriguez, the head of Venezuela’s National Assembly, said the call was not the topic of his press conference, where he announced a lawmaker investigation into US boat strikes in the Caribbean.
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US Sees Progress After Talks in Florida with Ukraine, but More Work Needed to Reach Deal
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, and US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner meet with a Ukrainian delegation in Hallandale Beach, Florida, US, November 30, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Eva Marie Uzcategui
US and Ukrainian officials held what both sides called productive talks on Sunday about a Russia peace deal, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressing optimism about progress despite challenges to ending the more than 3-year-long war.
Rubio met with a Ukrainian delegation led by a new chief negotiator in Florida, his home state, for talks that he said were meant to create a pathway for Ukraine to remain sovereign and independent.
“We continue to be realistic about how difficult this is, but optimistic, particularly given the fact that as we’ve made progress, I think there is a shared vision here that this is not just about ending the war,” Rubio told reporters after the talks concluded. “It is about securing Ukraine’s future, a future that we hope will be more prosperous than it’s ever been.”
The discussions were a follow-up to a new set of negotiations that began with a fresh US blueprint for peace. Critics said the plan initially favored Russia, which started the conflict with a 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Special envoy Steve Witkoff and US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, were also present representing the US side. Witkoff leaves on Monday for Moscow, where he is expected to meet Russian counterparts for talks this week.
“There’s more work to be done. This is delicate,” Rubio said. “There are a lot of moving parts, and obviously there’s another party involved here … that will have to be a part of the equation, and that will continue later this week, when Mr. Witkoff travels to Moscow.”
Trump has expressed frustration at not being able to end the war. He pledged as a presidential candidate to do so in one day and has said he was surprised it has been so hard, given what he calls a strong relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has largely resisted concessions to stop the fighting.
Trump’s team has pressured Ukraine to make significant concessions itself, including giving up territory to Russia.
The talks shifted on Sunday with a change in leadership from the Ukrainian side. A new chief negotiator, national security council secretary Rustem Umerov, led the discussions for Kyiv after the resignation on Friday of previous team leader Andriy Yermak, chief of staff to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, amid a corruption scandal at home.
“Ukraine’s got some difficult little problems,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday, referring to the corruption scandal, which he said was “not helpful.” He repeated his view that both Russia and Ukraine wanted to end the war and said there was a good chance a deal could be reached.
Umerov thanked the United States and its officials for their support. “US is hearing us, US is supporting us, US is walking besides us,” he said in English as the negotiations began.
After the meeting, he declared it productive. “We discussed all the important matters that are important for Ukraine, for Ukrainian people and US was super supportive,” Umerov said.
The Sunday talks took place near Miami at a private club, Shell Bay, developed by Witkoff’s real estate business.
Zelensky had said he expected the results from previous meetings in Geneva would be “hammered out” on Sunday. In Geneva, Ukraine presented a counter-offer to proposals laid out by US Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll to leaders in Kyiv some two weeks ago.
Ukraine’s leadership, facing a domestic political crisis fueled by a probe into major graft in the energy sector, is seeking to push back on Moscow-friendly terms as Russian forces grind forward along the front lines of the war.
Last week, Zelensky warned Ukrainians, who are weathering widespread blackouts from Russian air strikes on the energy system, that his country was at its most difficult moment yet but pledged not to make a bad deal.
“As a weatherman would say, there’s the inherent difficulty in forecasting because the atmosphere is a chaotic system where small changes can lead to large outcomes,” Kyiv’s first deputy foreign minister Sergiy Kyslytsya, also part of the delegation, wrote on X from Miami on Sunday.
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Netanyahu’s Pardon Request: What Happens Next?
Israeli President Isaac Herzog speaks during a press conference with Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics in Riga, Latvia, Aug. 5, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ints Kalnins
i24 News – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday submitted a formal request for a presidential pardon to President Isaac Herzog, i24NEWS Hebrew legal commentator Avishai Grintzig revealed.
What happens next? The request now enters a detailed, multi-stage review process involving the Ministry of Justice, law-enforcement bodies, and the President’s Residence.
Once a request is filed, it is first transferred to the Pardons Department in the Ministry of Justice.
The department begins gathering extensive information, seeking input from the Prison Service, Israel Police, the State Attorney’s Office, welfare and medical authorities, and the Enforcement and Collection Authority.
After assembling the material, the Pardons Department submits its opinion to the Minister of Justice. The minister then issues his own recommendation. If a conflict of interest arises, the government must appoint another minister to handle the matter.
The minister’s recommendation is then sent to the legal department at the President’s Residence, where the file is reviewed, supplemented as needed, and passed on to the President’s Legal Advisor.
The Legal Advisor prepares an independent opinion and may conduct additional inquiries with the Pardons Department or other relevant bodies. Once complete, the full file — including all opinions and documentation — is presented to the President for a final decision.
If the President approves the pardon, he signs a clemency document, which is then countersigned by the Minister of Justice (or a substitute minister). The applicant is notified in writing and receives the signed document.
If the President rejects the request, the applicant receives a written notice explaining the decision.