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Political Inaction Fuels Rising Antisemitism
U.S. Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff listens during a panel discussion with women entrepreneurs during his visit to Mi Casa Resource Center in Denver, Colorado, U.S., March 11, 2022. Jason Connolly/Pool via REUTERS/Pool via REUTERS
JNS.org – As second gentleman Douglas Emhoff joined the groundbreaking ceremony for the Tree of Life Synagogue memorial in Pittsburgh, his presence highlighted a stark contradiction: While government officials pay lip service to combating antisemitism, their actions—or lack thereof—tell a different story.
The same day as this solemn event, antisemitic violence struck the Adas Torah synagogue in Los Angeles. This juxtaposition encapsulates a troubling reality: While we commemorate past tragedies, new ones unfold before our eyes, often met with political indifference or inadequate response.
The surge in antisemitism across North America is not merely anecdotal; it is a statistical fact.
In Montreal, police reports show a dramatic rise in antisemitic incidents throughout 2023, with a further spike following Oct. 7. Toronto has witnessed a staggering 93% increase in reported hate crimes since the Israel-Hamas war began, with Jewish people being the target of 56% of all reported hate crimes in 2024.
Statistics in the United States are similar. The ADL tracked a reported 3,283 antisemitic incidents between Oct. 7, 2023 and Jan. 7, 2024, marking a 361% increase in reported antisemitic incidents when compared to the 712 incidents the organization said were reported during the same period the year before.
Yet despite this overwhelming evidence, there seems to be a systemic failure to address these crimes with the seriousness they deserve. Time and again, we witness acts of violence against Jews being downplayed, charges dropped and the “hate crime” designation avoided.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s office, led by Alvin Bragg, recently dropped charges against most pro-Palestinian protesters arrested at Columbia University. This decision sent shockwaves through the Jewish community, effectively signaling that there are no consequences for the relentless persecution of Jews on campus.
Adding insult to injury, leaked text messages from Columbia University deans revealed a dismissive and sarcastic attitude towards the concerns of Jewish students and staff. Some of the deans mockingly referred to the Hillel director who had attempted to raise an alarm against antisemitism on campus, his warnings falling on deaf and mocking ears. These messages expose a deeply troubling bias within the very institutions meant to protect and educate our youth.
This pattern of leniency and indifference extends beyond academia. In Los Angeles, Paul Kessler was killed by a pro-Hamas professor during a protest, yet the attacker wasn’t charged with a hate crime due to an alleged “lack of evidence.” In New York, when a Jewish family was physically assaulted by Arabic-speaking attackers during a public school graduation ceremony in Brooklyn, police refused to classify it as a hate crime.
The political response to these incidents has been woefully inadequate. While we hear condemnations from both sides of the aisle, concrete action is conspicuously absent. The reluctance to prosecute antisemitic acts as hate crimes stands in stark contrast to how other forms of bigotry are treated. It’s a painful irony that in a society that prides itself on protecting minorities, Jews find themselves increasingly vulnerable and unprotected.
The roots of this problem run deep. There’s a growing trend of minimizing or outright denying the reality of antisemitism. Some journalists such as Talia Jane from The New Republic go so far as to suggest that what we’re witnessing isn’t really antisemitism at all. This gaslighting of the Jewish community only adds insult to injury and emboldens those who seek to harm us.
We must recognize that rhetoric has consequences. Dehumanization of a people is where it starts but it rarely ends there. The relentless anti-Jewish and anti-Israel rhetoric we’re seeing in political discourse is not harmless debate—it’s fueling real-world violence against Jews.
What’s particularly alarming is how our cherished democratic values are being weaponized against us. Free speech, a cornerstone of our democracy, is being twisted to shield those who spread hatred and incite violence against Jews. Our political leaders seem paralyzed, unable or unwilling to confront this perversion of our ideals.
The situation at Columbia University serves as a microcosm of this larger political problem. Despite pleas from major donors and clear evidence of a hostile environment for Jewish students, the administration has failed to take meaningful action. The leaked text messages reveal a level of institutional antisemitism that demands immediate political intervention.
As a community, Jews have contributed immensely to the fabric of American society. We have thrived here, believing in the promise of equality and justice for all. But today, that promise rings hollow. It seems that despite all our contributions and our deep roots in this nation, we cannot get justice when we need it most.
The time has come for a serious political reckoning. We need more than just memorials and words of condemnation from political figures. We need action.
Law enforcement must be empowered and directed to treat antisemitic crimes with the full weight of the law. Educational institutions must be held accountable for fostering environments where Jewish students feel unsafe.
Antisemitism is not just a Jewish problem—it’s a societal one. When the rights and safety of any minority group are threatened, the very foundations of our democratic society are at risk.
The post Political Inaction Fuels Rising Antisemitism first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Surge of Antisemitic Incidents Rocks France Amid Growing Security Concerns
The Paris Holocaust Memorial, three synagogues, and a Jewish restaurant were all vandalized with green paint last weekend. Photo: Screenshot
France has been hit by a wave of antisemitic incidents in recent days, despite increased security at Jewish sites nationwide following last month’s antisemitic shooting in Washington, DC — prompting urgent calls from the country’s Jewish community for stronger government action amid growing fears of escalating violence.
On Friday, a French rabbi was violently assaulted by three drunken individuals in the town of Deauville, located in the Normandy region of northwestern France.
According to local police, Rabbi Eli Lemel — a prominent figure in French Jewry — was attacked around 3:30 pm by three men who approached him, repeatedly punched him in the stomach, and shouted antisemitic slurs.
French authorities have launched an investigation into the assault, but no arrests have been made so far.
After the incident, Lemel called on the Jewish community to draw spiritual strength amid the increasing hostility that Jews are facing across France.
“I’m deeply moved by the outpouring of support following the attack. Thank God, I’m okay,” the Jewish leader wrote in a post on X. “I was struck and verbally abused in a language I didn’t understand.”
In a separate incident, a 21-year-old man was arrested on Saturday after climbing a synagogue in the town of Conflans-Sainte-Honorine in north-central France, removing an Israeli flag from its façade, and attempting to set it on fire.
According to local media, the suspect — who was already known to authorities for prior offenses — confessed to committing the attack and admitted to being intoxicated at the time.
French police confirmed that the man is being charged with trespassing in a place of worship, theft by climbing, and causing damage to property on religious grounds.
The local Jewish community has voiced deep concern following this incident, viewing it as part of a broader surge in hostility targeting Jewish institutions across France.
Sandrine Dos Santos, the city’s mayor, expressed “[her] solidarity, as well as that of the city, toward the Jewish community directly targeted by these unacceptable antisemitic acts.”
“Faced with the increase in violence, our commitment against discrimination remains unwavering and will not waver. We repeat it loud and clear: no form of racism or rejection of others has a place in Poissy,” the French leader said.
In a separate incident on Saturday, three Serbs were arrested near Antibes in southeastern France, suspected of painting several Jewish community buildings green in Paris — an act currently under investigation as possible foreign interference.
Last weekend, the Paris Holocaust Memorial, three synagogues, and a Jewish restaurant were all vandalized with green paint in an incident denounced by the French government.
On Monday, an elementary school in Lyon, east-central France, was set on fire and defaced with antisemitic and pro-Palestinian slogans, as well as swastikas, marking one of the latest antisemitic incidents to impact France in recent days.
As the school had no direct connections to the Jewish community, local police have launched an investigation to determine the motive behind the attack.
French authorities reported that the fire was limited to the outdoor bathrooms, causing no significant damage to the school. They also found antisemitic graffiti and swastikas in three classrooms.
Yonathan Arfi, president of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF), denounced the attack, saying that “the Palestinian cause is used as justification for burning down a school” and that the “Nazification of Israel serves as fuel for crass antisemitism.”
“When a populist pro-Palestinian narrative is allowed to take hold, it is French Jews who ultimately pay the price,” Arfi wrote in a post on X. “The twisted use of the Palestinian cause is turning into a rallying cry of hatred against both Jews and the Republic itself.”
Voilà où nous en sommes !
La cause palestinienne sert de justification pour incendier une école
Quand on laisse gagner un discours populiste propalestinien, ce sont les Français juifs qui en paient le prix.… https://t.co/dMaQBnbfqi
— Yonathan Arfi (@Yonathan_Arfi) June 1, 2025
Beyond France, other European countries have also experienced a surge in antisemitic incidents in recent weeks.
On Monday, several headstones were vandalized at a Jewish cemetery in a suburb of Belgrade, located in north-central Serbia, marking the second such incident in the country in recent weeks.
The post Surge of Antisemitic Incidents Rocks France Amid Growing Security Concerns first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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US Vetoes UN Security Council Demand for Gaza Ceasefire
Smoke rises from Gaza after an explosion, as seen from Israel, June 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen
The United States vetoed a UN Security Council demand on Wednesday for an “immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire” between Israel and Palestinian terrorist group Hamas in Gaza and unhindered aid access across the enclave.
“The United States has been clear we would not support any measure that fails to condemn Hamas and does not call for Hamas to disarm and leave Gaza,” Acting US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea told the council before the vote.
“This resolution would undermine diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire that reflects the realities on the ground, and embolden Hamas,” she said of the text that was put forward by 10 countries on the 15-member council.
The remaining 14 council members voted in favor of the draft resolution.
Israel has rejected calls for an unconditional or permanent ceasefire, saying Hamas cannot stay in Gaza. It has renewed its military offensive in Gaza – also seeking to free hostages held by Hamas – since ending a two-month ceasefire in March.
The war in Gaza has raged since 2023 after Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 people in Israel in an Oct. 7 attack and took some 250 hostages back to the enclave.
The post US Vetoes UN Security Council Demand for Gaza Ceasefire first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Trump Picks Lawyer Who Called Oct. 7 Attack a ‘Psyop’ to Lead Federal Watchdog Agency
Paul Ingrassia. Photo: Screenshot
Paul Ingrassia, a 29-year-old lawyer who was recently nominated by US President Donald Trump to lead a federal agency dedicated to combating corruption and protecting whistleblowers, seemingly dismissed the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2o23, invasion of and massacre across southern Israel as a “psyop,” or “psychological operation, in resurfaced social media posts.
“This ‘war’ is yet another psyop to distract Americans from celebrating Columbus Day,” Ingrassia wrote on X/Twitter on Oct. 8, 2023.
“I think we could all admit at this stage that Israel/Palestine, much like Ukraine before it, and BLM before that, and covid/vaccine before that, was another psyop,” he posted a week later. “But sadly, people fell for it. And they’ll fall for the next one too.”
On the actual day of the Oct. 7 massacre, Ingrassia compared illegal immigration into the US to the Hamas-led onslaught.
“The amount of energy everyone has put into condemning Hamas (and prior to that, the Ukraine conflict) over the past 24 hours should be the same amount of energy we put into condemning our wide open border, which is a war comparable to the attack on Israel in terms of bloodshed — but made worse by the fact that it’s occurring in our very own backyard,” he posted. “We shouldn’t be beating the war drum, however tragic the events may be overseas, until we resolve our domestic problems first.”
Trump announced last week that he picked Ingrassia to serve as head of the US Office of Special Counsel, a position that requires confirmation by the Senate.
The Office of Special Counsel is an independent federal ethics agency that works to ensure fairness and accountability within the government. Ingrassia’s role, if he is confirmed, would involve investigating claims of wrongdoing, such as retaliation against whistleblowers or improper political activity in the workplace. The official can recommend disciplinary action and reports serious findings to Congress, helping to protect federal employees and uphold the integrity of the civil service system.
Ingrassia also maintains a relationship with and defends alleged sex trafficker Andrew Tate, who has promoted antisemitic conspiracy theories on social media. Tate wrote on X/Twitter that he refuses to “listen to women, Mexicans, or Jews” and that Jewish people are “subverting Western populations into mass genetic suicide” by advancing what he described as misguided immigration policy. Tate has also accused Israel of committing a “genocide” in Gaza against Palestinians and engaged in Holocaust denialism.
The furor surrounding Ingrassia is the latest dustup the Trump administration has had regarding controversial personnel and antisemitism.
The Trump administration’s appointment of Kingsley Wilson as deputy press secretary at the Department of Defense also sparked widespread criticism due to her history of promoting antisemitic conspiracy theories and extremist views. Wilson, formerly associated with the Center for Renewing America, has a documented history of social media posts endorsing white supremacist ideologies, including claims about the 1915 lynching of Leo Frank — a Jewish man whose wrongful conviction and subsequent murder galvanized the founding of the Anti-Defamation League. In 2023, she tweeted that Frank “raped & murdered a 13-year-old girl,” a statement aligning with neo-Nazi narratives.
Late last month, the Pentagon announced that Wilson will be promoted and serve as the department’s new press secretary.
The post Trump Picks Lawyer Who Called Oct. 7 Attack a ‘Psyop’ to Lead Federal Watchdog Agency first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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