May 24, 2019
THE WEEK'S BIG 3
Less than a week after three attempted arsons against Massachusetts Jewish centers, three Molotov cocktails were thrown at a Chicago synagogue. The incidents were the latest in a series targeting synagogues and Jewish institutions in the U.S. Also this week, in California, a guest lecturer in a UCLA anthropology class likened Zionism to white supremacy. And in New Jersey, a 20-year-old man was arrested after sending money to Hamas and threatening to attack a pro-Israel rally, the Israeli Consulate and other targets in New York.
1) ‘Somebody out there wants to hurt us’: Arson in Boston, Chicago rattles local Jews
“A rash of fires that were intentionally set at Jewish community centers in Chicago and around Boston last week has left Jewish groups feeling vulnerable. Authorities in Boston said all three Boston-area fires were deliberately set and are being investigated as potential hate crimes. Authorities in Chicago have called the attack ‘willful’ and ‘a chilling reminder of rising anti-Semitism in the United States’”
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+ Chicago police boosting presence at Jewish schools, synagogues after Molotov cocktails found
2) UCLA Guest Lecturer Calls Zionists White Supremacists
“During a guest lecture[…] San Francisco State University Arab and Muslim Ethnicities Professor Rabab Abudulhadi called Zionists white supremacists, ranting against Israel and claiming ‘that those who support Israel want to ethnically cleanse the Middle East and those affiliated with Israel and pro-Israel organizations are white supremacists.”
READ ON
+ ADL resource: What is… anti-Israel, anti-Semitic, anti-Zionist?
3) Hamas-obsessed NJ man spoke of NYC terror attacks, sent money to militants and polled Instagram audience ‘should I bomb Trump Tower?,’ court documents say
20-year-old Jonathan Xie, of Basking Ridge, was arrested on charges of attempting to provide material support to a designated terror group. He also spewed hatred against Jewish people, allegedly vowing in an Instagram Live video that he would go to a pro-Israel march and “shoot everybody.”
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+ Feds say New Jersey man posted that he wanted to ‘bomb Trump Tower’
KEY ADL SOCIAL STATEMENTS
• Polish political candidate puts a Kippa on the head of his rival, stating afterwards that she “bows to Jews and would sell the country for money
• Sixth migrant child dies in U.S. custody
• Congress takes up the cause of Dreamers for the first time since 2010
• HUD proposes policy that would allow homeless shelters to use religion to discriminate against transgender people
IN THE COMMUNITY
• Principal: Student discovers hand-drawn Swastika on desk of Newton elementary school (New England Cable News)
• Pennsylvania politician refuses to apologize for selfie with white supremacist (The Forward)
• Education faculty member named Belfer Fellow (Penn State News)
ADL IN THE NEWS
• Revealed: Survey shows nearly three-quarters of American Jews feel increasingly threatened and 60% blame Trump and his handling of antisemitism attacks (Daily Mail, Jonathan Greenblatt interviewed)
• The New German Anti-Semitism (New York Times Magazine)
• Hate has no home here: All New York leaders must speak out clearly against a rash of anti-Semitic hate (Daily News Editorial)
• Soros foundation seeks to fight conspiratorial chatter on Fox News. To little avail. (Washington Post op-ed)
• Qatari Emir kisses forehead of preacher who called Jews ‘apes and pigs’ (Jewish Journal)
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