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Washington Residents Outraged over Neighbor’s Refusal to Remove Nazi Insignia from Property

As La Center, Washington, nears ever closer to the same kind of population growth seen in the neighboring communities of Ridgefield and Battle Ground, residents of the tiny town say there is one specific house sending the wrong antisemitic message to incoming residents and businesses.

“Right now, with the expansion of La Center, we must make a choice about whether or not we will allow the city to be a safe haven for Nazis and Nazi sympathizers,” resident Emily Hancock told the city council during its March 22 meeting.

Hancock said she came to the council meeting representing “a large body of citizens” concerned about an East Dogwood Avenue home with large hand-painted swastikas on the exterior of the house and a World War II Third Reich German flag flying above the home. Property records show the house is owned by longtime La Center resident Donald Soehl.

“The inhabitants of this house are notorious for harassing their neighbors and displaying obscene flags and signs with the intent to intimidate and offend,” Hancock told the council.

Hancock said allowing the graffiti to remain would make existing and potential residents question whether La Center is a welcoming, safe place to live.

Berlin Bans Protests of Terror Organization over Antisemitic Calls

The authorities in the city-state of Berlin banned protests on Saturday and Sunday, organized by the Israeli government-designated terrorist NGO Samidoun that aids Palestinian terrorists.

This was reported by the Berlin newspaper BZ on Friday. A police official said: "According to our forecast, we would have to deal with added acts of violence."

The Jerusalem Post reported that last Saturday, an estimated 500 Germans, most of whom were Muslims, marched through two Berlin neighborhoods chanting “Death to Jews” and “Death to Israel.”

The protest was organized by Samidoun, a Palestinian NGO that has been classified as a terrorist entity by Israel. According to Israel’s The National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing (NBCTF), “The Samidoun organization was designated as a terrorist organization as it is part of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and was founded by members of the PFLP in 2012.”

The US and the EU proscribed the PFLP a foreign terrorist organization. In 2020, the Post exclusively reported that Berlin’s government imposed a four-year ban on Khaled Barakat, who the PFLP said was a “coordinator “ of Samidoun.

According to NBCTF, “Representatives of the organization are active in many countries in Europe and North America, led by Khaled Barakat, who is part of the leadership of PFLP abroad. Barkat is involved with establishing militant cells and motivating terrorist activity in Judea and Samaria and abroad. The formal goal of Samidoun is to assist Palestinian prisoners in their struggle to be released from prison. However, in practice, it serves as a front for the PFLP abroad. “

The deputy federal chairman of the German police union, Manuel Ostermann, called the demonstration last week “a picture of shame.” Antisemitism needed to be fought in Germany “with all legal means,” he said, according to a report by German broadcaster BR24.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, the associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, told the Post “I raised the issue of the death to Israel chants on the streets of Berlin [and other cities] with the Ministry of Justice on that day and at other anti-Israel demonstrations years ago. Nothing has changed. Fighting antisemitism is hard work, but to be effective there must be consequences for those who publicly shout threats not heard on the streets of Germany since the Nazi Third Reich.”

Cooper added “We appreciate the various initiatives announced to combat antisemitism but of even greater importance is arresting and prosecuting ‘Death to Israel’ protesters. Without it, the mainstreaming of Jew hatred in German society will only continue to expand with potentially dire results. If history taught us anything, it is that the words taught and uttered in the 1930s in Germany set the stage for the Shoah.”

The Post reached out to Katharina von Schnurbein, the EU Commissioner tasked with fighting antisemitism, who just participated in a conference in Berlin titled “Actions Matter” against antisemitism. The Post asked von Schnurbein if the EU will designate Samidoun a terrorist entity. Von Schnurbein did not immediately respond to a press query. Von Schnurbein has faced calls from the Simon Wiesenthal Center to urge the EU to ban the entire Lebanese terrorist movement Hezbollah within the borders of the EU. Von Schnurbein has declined to call for a full ban of Hezbollah.

The German branch of Samidoun has been active across the Federal Republic, including a demonstration in Frankfurt against Israel. The city of Stuttgart permits the pro-BDS organization Palestine Committee Stuttgart, which supports Samidoun, to post its information on the municipal website. Palestine Committee Stuttgart promotes Samidoun in entries on its website. The mayor of Stuttgart in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Frank Nopper, and the controversial civil servant, Michael Blume, decided to not pursue new legal action to delete the Palestine Committee Stuttgart notice on the city’s website.

The Post reported in January that a German court in Hamburg said Blume, who is supposed to fight antisemitism, can be termed antisemitic due to his attacks on German Jews and a founder of the IDF, Orde Wingate.  

The internationally famous German attorney Joachim Steinhöfel, who also writes a column for Bild paper, termed Blume “antisemitic” and prevailed in the January Hamburg court decision.

Steinhöfel recently defeated Blume and his employer, the state government of Baden-Württemberg, again in a court case about the state violating the government’s “requirement to be objective” because its spokesman defended Blume and termed Steinhöfel's comment against Blume “despicable.” Israel’s former ambassador to the US, Michael Oren, told the Post last year that Blume should resign. 

Steinhöfel told the Post on Saturday that “By trying to defend an incompetent and touchy antisemitic bureaucrat [Michael Blume], the government of Baden-Württemberg became, by judicial confirmation, a serial violator of the constitutional rights of German citizens.”

In the last six months, courts issued three verdicts against Baden-Württemberg. Two in Steinhöfel’s favor and one for the pro-Israel blog “Die Achse des Guten” (The Axis of Good). Baden-Württemberg’s government had to sign two cease-and-desist-declarations  for violating the constitutional rights of the famous German-Jewish journalist Henryk M. Broder and Steinhöfel.

Autistic Jewish Student Sent Home with Swastika Carved into Back on Holocaust Remembrance Day

Over the past few months, there have been multiple incidents involving antisemitic slurs directed toward young students, including graffiti of swastikas, mocking gestures, and verbal abuse. In at least one instance, the abuse escalated to physical violence.

The Israeli-American Council (IAC) recently reported an increase in the number of complaints from Israeli-American students regarding antisemitic incidents in schools throughout the United States.

Following the IAC's intervention, the FBI is currently investigating a suspected hate crime against a visibly Jewish 17-year-old boy on the autistic spectrum who was found with a swastika carved on his back after returning from public school in the Las Vegas area.

Yale Blasted for Inviting Antisemitic, Homophobic Speaker During Passover

Last week, Yale University hosted a speaker known for promoting antisemitic views, including justifying the murders of Jews and Israelis.

Houria Bouteldja, who has expressed her hatred of Jews, Israel and whites, was invited to speak and supported by Yale’s flagship DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) program known as “Belonging at Yale.”

Bouteldja’s 2017 book Whites, Jews, and Us calls for the dismantling of Israel and outright antisemitism.

Bouteldja also blames Jews for their near-extermination by the Nazis and expresses hatred against whites.

She has said, “to kill an Israeli is to kill two birds with one stone, to eliminate oppressor and oppressed with one stone.”

The university hosted Bouteldja to speak on the second night of Passover, making it nearly impossible for Jewish people to attend, challenge her views, and ask important questions. NGO StopAntisemitism called upon Yale’s president to cancel the event due to Bouteldja’s outspoken Jew-hatred and homophobic views.

In March 2012, after the murder of a rabbi and three children in Toulouse, France by radical Islamist Mohammed Merah, Bouteldja declared: ‘Mohammed Merah is me.’

She also expresses her hatred of white people, describing them as “the one who subjugates, plunders, steals, rapes, commits genocide,” declaring, “I hate white conscience.” I curse it.’

She added, “Every white man … must take and steal … like a gangster, a brute, or a thug.”

She also dismisses the victims of 9/11, the bombings in the London subway of July 7 and the murders of Charlie Hebdo in Paris as superfluous whites: ‘Bombs explode in the subway. Towers … collapse like a house of cards. The journalists of a famous magazine are decimated. … [But] they are all white.’

The university, long known for its commitment to diversity, equality and inclusion, as well as its efforts to combat racism on campus, has not been without controversy.

In the past, the administration and students have been accused of suppressing speech that challenges the DEI perspective of the school with some recorded instances of harassment and even harassment of individuals expressing dissent. As a result, StopAntisemitism gave Yale University a failing grade for failing to protect the safety, livelihood, and speech of their Jewish students.

StopAntisemitism, along with many concerned organizations, students, and parents, reached out to Yale University on multiple occasions regarding the invitation of Houria Bouteldja. Yale failed to respond to any requests or concerns over the appearance.

Arizona Congressman Spreads Antisemitic Conspiracies on Holocaust Memorial Day

Arizona Republican Congressman Paul Gosar on Sunday promoted an antisemitic website that denies the Holocaust, praises Adolf Hitler as “a man of valor” and features a large number of admittedly false articles. 

In Gosar’s weekly newsletter to constituents, he included several links to stories about himself, one of which was titled “Congressman Gosar: Warmongers Nuland & Blinken ‘Are Dangerous Fools Who Can Get Us All Killed,’” referring to the on-going conflict in Ukraine. 

But the headline of the actual article was edited by Gosar’s staff to remove obvious antisemitism. The article the congressman linked to was headlined “Congressman: Jewish warmongers Nuland & Blinken ‘Are Dangers Fools Who Can Get Us All Killed,’” and was published by a far-right website well known for publishing antisemitic content that includes Holocaust denialism and conspiracy theories around 9/11. 

A review of the authors on the website by the Arizona Mirror found that one is currently promoting a book in which he claims the Holocaust was a “fraud,” and many of the site’s articles spread common antisemitic tropes. 

The site is also heavily pro-Kremlin, often republishing articles from the Russian state-run propaganda websites Russia Today and Sputnik. The story shared by Gosar was originally published by Sputnik, but had its headline changed to reflect the antisemitic tone of the site. 

Rory McShane, a spokesman for Gosar, said that the congressman uses a “third-party aggregating service” for headlines, and claimed that the website changed the article’s headline on April 17. 

That’s the day Media Matters for America published a piece about Gosar’s promotion of the site, and the day the Mirror sought an explanation from Gosar’s camp. The article does not say it was updated on April 17, only that it was published on Feb. 26. McShane did not respond to follow up questions asking how Gosar knew it the headline was changed on April 17. 

“We will not be using this website as a reference for any future articles,” McShane told the Mirror. He added that Gosar “is well known as one of the top advocates of the State of Israel and a defender of those of the Jewish faith across the world and has regularly been asked to speak to Jewish advocacy groups like the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation.” 

But this is not the first time Gosar has promoted content from websites that are connected to white supremacists who traffic in antisemitism. 

In 2021, Gosar promoted the work of known white nationalist Vincent James Foxx, who became the unofficial propagandist for a neo-Nazi fight club. Gosar spoke at the same white nationalist conference as Foxx a few years earlier, alongside Holocaust-denier and antisemite Nick Fuentes, the first sitting politician to do so. NGO StopAntisemitism shared that Gosar was promoting Nick Fuentes on various platforms. Fuentes is actively pushing Kanye West’s agenda across college campuses.

That work mentioned the “great replacement theory,” the idea, popular among white supremacists, that white Americans are being replaced by immigrants. It has been seized upon by extremist groups such as the American Identity Movement and Generation Identity.

It has also inspired violence. Fears of immigrants undermining his vision of a white Christian Europe motivated Anders Behring Breivik’s murderous rampage in 2011 at a Norwegian youth summer camp. 

In the U.S., the Tree of Life synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh in 2018 was the deadliest attack against the Jewish community in United States history. Just before it took place, the killer took to right-wing social media site Gab to say he believed that immigrants were being brought in to replace and “kill our people.” 

The next year in New Zealand, 51 people would be killed and 40 injured but not before the shooter would post a 74-page manifesto titled “The Great Replacement.” 

Again in 2019, in El Paso, Texas, a shooter who would kill 23 in a Walmart would cite the manifesto in one of his own saying it was a response to the “hispanic invasion of Texas.” Then again in 2022 in Buffalo, New York, where a shooter killed 10 people, most of them black. 

Gosar has frequently seized on meme culture used by white supremacists and neo-nazis on his Twitter account, including the #DarkMAGA movement, which has roots in accelerationist neo-Nazi meme culture and many memes related to it often express a desire for violence against perceived enemies. In many cases, they are accompanied by neo-Nazi imagery. 

Gosar’s staff said they were unaware of #DarkMAGA until it was brought to their attention by the Mirror. 

“Congressman Gosar continues to show us exactly who he is and what he stands for. The man has no shame, and remains a stain on Arizona’s political landscape,” Paul Rockower, executive director for the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Phoenix, said in a statement to the Mirror. 

Neither the Arizona Republican Party nor the Mohave County Republican Party responded to questions about Gosar’s promotion of an antisemitic website.

Seattle Synagogue Targeted by Vandals Ahead of Holocaust Remembrance Day

Temple De Hirsh Sinai in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood has once again been vandalized with antisemitic graffiti. Temple leaders discovered the damage Monday morning.

NGO StopAntisemitism shared the imagery of the antisemitic attack with their followers on Twitter.

“My first reaction was shock, disgust, and sadness,” Rabbi Daniel Weiner said. “I’m heartsick to say so, but this unfortunately is the current state of where we are as a society.”

The temple was also targeted in a similar incident back in 2017. Temple leaders said they’ve had minor incidents ever since.

“Just because it’s 2023 doesn’t mean that somehow we’ve transcended these acts of hate. In many ways, we have regressed to a darker, more abysmal place,” Weiner said.

Antisemitic 'GDL' Flyers Discovered in Palm Beach Area During Holocaust Memorial Day

Antisemitic flyers were found in Lake Park and Riviera Beach ahead of Yom HaShoah.

A fight against hate, and part of the reason Linda Posner helped organize a, “Standing up to Antisemitism in South Florida and Beyond,” event in her neighborhood this week. The timeliness also coincides with a rise in antisemitic flyers and messages distributed throughout the South Florida community, most recently Monday morning in Lake Park and Riviera Beach.

“It saddens me greatly and yes, this is widespread,” Posner said. “Unfortunately Chris, this is not limited to just Florida. “

Already this year WPTV has seen antisemitic flyers in West Palm Beach, Palm Beach, Boca Raton and now Lake Park and Riviera Beach.

StopAntisemitism, the leading watchdog organization combating Jew hatred and following these antisemitic flyers, has contributed them to the Goyim Defense League (GDL). The GDL is led by white supremacist Jon Minadeo II. Florida has become a hotbed of antisemitic activity due to members of the GDL’s flyer and banner drops.

The bill introduced by Delray Beach Republican Representative Mike Caruso would make projecting racist images on buildings without permission or harassing someone, because of their religious clothing a possible felony.

“And that’s the reason that House Bill 269 is so important, because it will make hate crimes a felony offense something that can be punishable," Posner said. "The whole idea is for us to live together with peace and respect.”

Barcelona's Largest Synagogue Vandalized Ahead of Holocaust Memorial Day

Antisemitic graffiti was scrawled Monday on the façade of Barcelona’s Maimonides Synagogue, the Spanish city’s largest, with vandals leaving pro-Palestinian messages on the Jewish house of worship.

The message, in Catalan, read: “Free Palestine from the river to the sea. Solidarity with the Palestinian people.”

Letters were also left nearby, accusing Israel of “genocide against the Palestinian people and apartheid,” saying it is “a murderous country that steals land and destroys innocents’ homes.” The letters accused “Catalan elites” of supporting Israel.

“Palestine from the river to the sea” was a slogan of the Palestine Liberation Organization beginning with its founding in 1964, claiming a Palestinian state between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea and rejecting control by Israel of any land in the region, including areas held by Israel prior to 1967. It later became a popular political slogan used by Palestinians who reject compromise with Israel, including the terror group Hamas, which calls for the destruction of Israel.

The vandalism, which appeared ahead of Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day, was denounced by a number of Jewish groups, with the head of the Conference of European Rabbis linking it to Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau’s recent decision to suspend institutional relations with Israel, particularly a twin city agreement with Tel Aviv.

“Every additional case of vandalism and bloodshed as a result of this unfortunate choice will be on her hands,” Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt said in a statement.

The leftist mayor announced the move in February, writing in a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that she had taken the step due to Israel’s “systemic violation” of the rights of the Palestinian population.

NGO StopAntisemitism reported the news of Mayor Ada Colau to their followers.

Colau, a former anti-eviction activist, cited several Israeli policies including its construction of settlements on lands claimed by the Palestinians for a future state.

“It would be a severe mistake to apply a policy of double standards and turn a blind eye to a violation that has been, for decades, widely verified and documented by international organizations,” she added.

Barcelona’s city council symbolically later rejected Colau’s decision, with only her party voting in support.

The move was also criticized by Spain’s foreign minister and the mayor of Madrid, with the latter offering to twin his city with Tel Aviv in Barcelona’s stead.

CNN Journalist Ordered to Delete Antisemitic Social Media Posts

CNN_Journalist_Under_Fire_For_Anti_Israel_Works


Tamara Qiblawi, Senior Digital Middle East Producer based in CNN's London bureau

CNN journalist Tamara Qiblawi will delete a string of anti-Israel and pro-terror comments on social media, according to CNN, The Jerusalem Post has learned. The response came to an  HonestReporting (HR) revelation last week that the journalist who wrote a slanted article on April 8 with the headline, “Attacks in West Bank, Tel Aviv as tensions remain high following Israeli strikes,” initially failed to note that the airstrikes were in response to acts of aggression from terrorist groups in Gaza and Lebanon.

Qiblawi, who is originally from Lebanon, studied at Georgetown University and has worked for CNN since 2015. She is currently the senior digital Middle East producer at its London bureau.

“Qiblawi’s social media history casts doubt on her commitment to CNN’s editorial standards, specifically when it comes to reporting on the Arab-Israeli conflict,” HR reported.

HR cited a Facebook entry dated May 15, 2015, in which Qiblawi described the events surrounding Israel’s founding with the Palestinian term nakba, “catastrophe” in Arabic, a term Palestinians use to describe their experience in the 1948 War of Independence while denouncing the creation of Israel a safe haven for Jews, “mak[ing] way for an ethnoreligious exclusive state.”

Lebanon faced a “ruthless, genocidal onslaught of an Israeli invasion,” she wrote. She also wrote about her “desire for resistance to the Zio-Saudi project.”

CNN told HR on April 11: “Tamara Qiblawi has a track record of delivering excellent, balanced journalism for CNN on the Middle East and other topics. She has agreed to delete these posts.”

After the January 2015 terrorist attack in Paris, which targeted the Charlie Hebdo magazine and later Hyper Cacher, a kosher supermarket, Qiblawi wrote on Facebook that she was “not convinced” that Islamist terrorists had perpetrated the massacre, and she complained about “the absence of any critical consideration of the parties with a vested interest in framing Muslims.”

Qiblawi later wrote: “[O]ur tendency towards conspiracies is not based on some kind of mass paranoid schizophrenia but knowledge of our history with the west,” citing an alleged “campaign to dispossess Palestinians in ’48” as one example of a conspiracy by “the West.”

After HR revealed in November that a CNN producer had written on social media that he was a proud backer of #Team Hitler and defended Hamas, CNN fired him, HR executive director Gil Hoffman said.

HR did not call for Qiblawi to be fired, but she should not be permitted to write about Israel due to her bias, he said.

“We were disappointed that CNN did not take any disciplinary action at all against a bylined journalist who reports on Israel and openly calls for its destruction,” Hoffman said. “Israel is clearly not an issue she can report on objectively. By letting this go without even a slap on the wrist, CNN missed a key opportunity to professionally safeguard its coverage of such sensitive matters.”

Threatening Antisemitic Messaging Forces a Minneapolis Synagogue to Suspend In-Person Services

A south Minneapolis synagogue closed its doors on Sunday after antisemitic messages were found at a nearby bus stop.

Temple Israel leaders made the decision to move all programming to Zoom “out of an abundance of caution.” Officials plan to open the building back up on Monday.

Jewish leaders said dealing with the increase in hate is tough but they’re pushing forward.

“Words are powerful, words hurt and words can heal,” Rabbi Marcia Zimmerman, from Temple Israel, said.

Within a mile of Temple Israel, words were scribbled on a bench at a bus stop riddled with antisemitism.

“Whoever wrote that graffiti was trying to hurt us with their words, and we are going to counteract it with healing words, not with hate,” Zimmerman said. “Of course, it’s upsetting, to say the least.”

Metro Transit Police was notified late Saturday night that a bus shelter at the corner of Lyndale Avenue South and 31st Street West had been vandalized.

Police documented antisemitic language and a specific reference to Temple Israel. Authorities have since removed the writing.

“It has always existed in this world. It’s not something new. The question is what we’re going to do about it,” Rabbi Sholom Brook, Chabad Young Jewish Professionals’ co-director, said.

As antisemitic cases rise, religious leaders explained they’re choosing hope over hate.

“It’s really our job to spread the light, spread hope and spread goodness and kindness,” Brook said. “One more action of goodness and kindness will really tip the scale of the world and shine through any darkness and any hate that is harbored in any individual or any group.”

Metro Transit police continue to investigate the incident in collaboration with Minneapolis police.

Australian Traffic Control Parades "Jews Did 9/11" Display Throughout North Queensland

A well-known air traffic control company has sparked outrage after an antisemitic message was affixed to the back of one of its vehicles. Drivers were shocked to see an electronic bulletin board with the words ‘JEWS DID 9/11’ on the back of a car in Cairns, northern Queensland, on Friday.

The vehicle was owned by the traffic control company A2O Traffic Solutions.

A vehicle belonging to traffic control company A20 Traffic Solutions was spotted with an antisemitic message

The message referred to the horrific terrorist attack that brought down the World Trade Center in 2001 and killed nearly 3,000 people in the US.

Conspiracy theorists have spread damaging rumors linking the Jewish community and Israel to the event.

The 9/11 Commission found that Khalid Sheik Mohammed was the man who came up with the idea of ​​the attack and took it to al-Qaeda, who made the horror a reality.

Local Samantha Brookes said she was driving home from shops in nearby Kanimbla when she was confronted by the shocking display.

“I wrote down the driver’s license and vehicle unit number and called the office,” she told the Cairn’s mail.

The 22-year-old said the act was unacceptable, and she was “outraged that someone would show such a message.”

“I didn’t think we had Nazis here in Cairns,” she said.

A representative from A20 Traffic Solutions told the Cairns Post that he had received several calls from the public and had already spoken to the driver.

“The driver said he had no idea about the message being displayed, and his friend was doing it as a joke,” he said.

“We take this very seriously; we take all matters seriously.”

Dr. Dvir Abramovich, chairman of the anti-defamation committee, told Daily Mail Australia that the message on the back of the ute was a “brazen act of antisemitism.”

A representative from A20 Traffic Solutions said the company was taking the incident ‘seriously’

He described it as “a stomach-turning stain on our community.”

“Make no mistake: this dangerous insult was specifically aimed at the Jewish community for defamation, and who knows how many people saw this outrage,” he said.

“Hateful conspiracy theories and myths fanning the flames of hostility and inciting violence against the Jewish community have no place in Cairns, and the driver who so openly chose such abhorrent bigotry should be fired.”

Dr. Abramovich said it was hard to believe the act was intended as a “joke.”

“Words are bullets and have real-life consequences and often result in physical aggression against the Jewish community,” he said.

“At a time when antisemitism is booming and spreading like wildfire across the country, businesses have a duty to respond effectively to any expression of prejudice in a decisive manner that sends the message that this kind of vitriol will never be a safe haven. will find in their midst. .’

Multiple Antisemitic Incidents Reported at Stanford University

Stanford University History Corner

Officials at Stanford University are investigating the campus’ second antisemitic in less than ten days, The Stanford Daily reported on Thursday.

On Wednesday, a swastika was etched into a metal panel in bathroom of History Corner, a  century-old building on the northeast side of the Main Quad of campus. The incident followed the desecration of a undergraduate resident’s mezuzah on April 3.

Rabbi Jessica Kirschner of Hillel at Stanford, speaking to The Algemeiner on Friday called on administrators to create a plan of action for addressing antisemitism at Stanford University.

“These incidents keep happening, and this is totally unacceptable,” Kirschner said. “Clearly more work is needed to address a culture where individuals feel emboldened to behave this way, and where it is challenging to identify the perpetrators.”

Similar incidents at Stanford University have occurred several times this academic year. In March, a Jewish student found an image of Hitler and swastikas on their door on Friday, several university administrators confirmed in an email to the community. Other incidents include the removal of an Israeli flag from a display of others from across the world and the desecration of a mezuzah belonging to a graduate student. Most recently, on Feb. 28, someone graffitied swastikas, the n-word, and “KKK” in a men’s bathroom.

In January, a Stanford University student was photographed reading Adolf Hitler’s memoir, prompting a series of discussions about “its impact on the community.”

Stanford University is currently undertaking several efforts aimed at increasing the campus’ inclusion of and support for the Jewish community. In October, it issued a bombshell report in which it admitted to limiting Jewish enrollment in the mid-twentieth century.

On April 7, according to The Stanford Daily, university president Marc Tessier-Lavigne attended a Passover Shabbat organized by Hillel at Stanford, where he said, “I want to make it very clear that we will not tolerate antisemitism and the symbols of antisemitism here on campus. It is something we need to eradicate.”

Over 1,600 students at the university are Jewish, according to Hillel International.

Georgia Man Arrested for Synagogue Bomb Hoax

A Forsyth County teen was recently arrested after an alleged bomb hoax at a synagogue.

According to an incident report from the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, the threat was reported at about 5 p.m. on March 21, after the suspect reportedly made a threat that morning “stating that a pipe bomb had been placed at a local Jewish Synagogue.”

As Congregation Beth Israel, located on Brannon Road, is the county’s only synagogue, deputies, including K9 units, searched the area and spoke with synagogue leaders. 

“I assisted the bomb detection dogs in clearing the house and property,” the responding officer wrote in the report. “No explosives were found on the premises.”

FCSO officials said Cooper Wells Hansen, 18, of Forsyth County, was arrested in connection with the threat and charged with terroristic threats and acts before posting an $11,020 bond.

The responding deputy wrote in the report that he “believed that this threat was made with a bias against Judaism” and the investigation has been turned over to the Forsyth County Detectives and the FBI.

Rhode Island Park Defaced with Antisemitic Graffiti and Homophobic Slurs

Members of the North Smithfield Democratic Town Committee in Rhode Island are speaking out to condemn intolerance following the discovery of antisemitic and bigoted vandalism – including swastikas – on property in a public park in town.

Vandals reportedly defaced a bench by the baseball field and a table by the volleyball court at Pacheco Park on or around Tuesday, April 11, with drawings of Nazi swastikas and words described as antisemitic, racist, and homophobic slurs.

“As a community, we must face an underlying sense of intolerance and disrespect – to whatever, and hopefully small degree – that exists in North Smithfield,” said Meghan Mello, chairperson of the committee. “With ever-widening schisms dividing us as citizens, these acts of vandalism can be seen also as acts of terror against those who are targeted by hateful messaging.”

Mello noted the vandalism follows the appearance of signs from the Proud Boys, a national organization described as a hate group, on roadsides in North Smithfield a few months ago. She also referenced recent controversies over the inclusion of certain books in the school curriculum.

“Instead of finding ways to create understanding and bonds amongst us, there are those who wish to ignore history, limit the gaining of knowledge, and ban books that otherwise might allow us to embrace all members of our community,” Mello said. “If understanding, acceptance, and justice are not taught, it appears hate will fill the vacuum.”

Local police have reportedly been notified of the vandalism, which is expected to be removed by staff from the Department of Public Works.

Mello noted that all members of the NSDTC are condemning the acts of vandalism and hate and are calling on elected and public officials to do the same.

“Let us show our children and the world that we are better than this,” she said.  

The organization, to which Mello was elected chairperson earlier this year, advocates for fair and equal opportunity in representation, housing, education, and a safe and welcoming community for all residents.

Israeli Flag Torched, Jewish Attendees Stoned During Basketball Game in Greece

Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar on Thursday denounced violence by Greek basketball fans against Israeli fans during a game the previous day as “an antisemitic attack against Jews,” as the international basketball federation FIBA announced the opening of disciplinary proceedings.

The match Wednesday in Athens descended into chaos when fans of AEK Athens burned an Israeli flag, launched fireworks and threw rocks at supporters of Hapoel Jerusalem.

In a statement, Zohar demanded action against AEK Athens and said he spoke with the head of FIBA, members of Hapoel Jerusalem and Greece’s deputy sports minister, Eleftherios Avgenakis.

The statement said Avgenakis relayed a message from Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis expressing sadness over the incident, adding that a suspect was arrested and that more arrests were possible.

FIBA’s Basketball Champions League (BCL) meanwhile announced the opening of a probe into the violence.

“Clubs that are unable to provide… a safe environment will be sanctioned accordingly,” it said.

A Hapoel Jerusalem fan who was at the game recalled the violence during an interview Thursday, describing the rioting as “a terror incident against Israeli Jews.”

“We put the women and children in the bathrooms and locked the stall doors. Lives were in danger,” Victoria Gur Aryeh told Kan public radio.

She accused AEK Athens supporters of calling the Israelis “murders” and waving banners with swastikas, while noting they torched an Israeli flag and not a Hapoel Jerusalem flag.

“Five hundred Israelis were attacked abroad in a terrifying manner,” she added.

Hapoel Jerusalem’s head of communications similarly called the violence “a terror attack.”

Roi Cohen told Kan that Greek police separated the sides but were helpless when the AEK Athens fans started hurling rocks and shooting off fireworks.

“We considered calling off the game and not going to the second half, but we understood from the police that if we did that it would cause chaos and a larger pogrom,” Cohen said.

The game, the second in a FIBA ​​Champions League quarterfinal series, ended in a 94-78 AEK victory. A rematch is due to be held next week in Israel.

Wisconsin Area Town Center Vandalized with Antisemitic Chalk Graffiti

Vandals drew antisemitic pictures in chalk on the 400 Block of Wausau that included claims of Jewish power and control as well as Stars of David with references to Satan. Thankfully, good samaritans came together to erase the hate before many could see.

When Jane Janke Johnson went to work on Thursday morning, she noticed something was different about the 400-block. “I noticed the graffiti right away. I wasn’t sure what it said,” said Jane Janke Johnson, co-owner of Janke Book Store. ”It’s definitely a hate crime, antisemitism. I didn’t recognize it at first,” said Johnson.

So Johnson decided to erase the hate herself until come unexpected help arrived. “We first noticed it when we got here and we were waiting for the theater to open for our field trip,” said Lily Schaefer, one of three good samaritans.

The Schaefer Sisters were supposed to go to a show at the Grand Theater, but at the last minute, it got canceled. ”Well we were here. We had nothing to do and I love helping people,” said Lily Schaefer. “When we saw somebody cleaning it up on the other walls we wanted to help,” said Thea Schaefer, another Schaefer sister. “We offered to help her clean it up.”

So the Schaefer Sisters joined Johnson to help clean up the antisemitic mess.

”Jane was already there with buckets of water and she had three or four buckets of water so the girls right away wanted to help with that,” said Jessica Shaefer, the mother of the Schaefer Sisters. “And we got to scrubbing and cleaning up.”

Their mom couldn’t have been prouder. “Putting your community and nation before your own wants and desires to make it a better place for everyone to live,” said Jessica Schaefer.

“Cause it’s important to help our community and when we can help out we should,” said Thea Schaefer.

Luckily, it only took the girls a couple of minutes to clean up, along with the help of the Wausau Police Department. The Schaefer Sisters scored a free book from Janke Book Store because of their willingness to help.

Anti-Abortion Activists Compare Holocaust Imagery to Abortion at the University of Arizona

On Wednesday an anti-abortion demonstration was set up on the University of Arizona campus mall. The student organization College Republicans United sponsored the demonstration which featured graphic images of what they claim are abortions as well as Nazi imagery and images from the Holocaust.

NGO StopAntisemitism shared photos of the demonstration to their followers on Twitter. WARNING: the content may be triggering to some viewers.

The organization Feminists Organized to Resist, Create, and Empower (FORCE) says the demonstration also compared abortion to global genocides and hate crimes.

According to an Instagram post the University of Arizona approved the demonstration saying it falls under freedom of speech.

Antisemitic 'GDL' Flyers Discovered in Napa Valley

Antisemitic signs and flyers posted outside of a Browns Valley Road residence in Napa Valley have drawn numerous complaints from Napans and several reports to the Napa Police Department this week. But the police have said they won’t do anything about the current signage and flyers, and they haven’t done anything about past signs there, because the messages are protected by the First Amendment.

“The message was reviewed by the Napa Police Department and assessed by the Napa County District Attorney’s Office,” Napa police chief Jennifer Gonzales said in a Wednesday email. “It was determined to be Constitutionally protected speech. Like other times when the message was written in a manner that provoked energy from others, we cannot and will not take unlawful law enforcement action against First Amendment protected speech.”

As of Wednesday morning, the sign outside of the Browns Valley Road residence reads: “Take One.” The flyers appear to be lightly edited versions of antisemitic flyers previously distributed around Florida and several other communities around the country, which accuse 10 of Disney’s executives of being Jewish and grooming children for sexual abuse; it includes pictures of each of those executives with a Star of David pasted on their forehead. Unlike those flyers, the Napa flyers additionally claim “Walt Disney World to Host largest LGBTQ+ Conference in the World” and accuse the Disney executives of being “Jews behind the curtain.”

NGO StopAntisemitism, a leading watchdog organization combating antisemitism, has contributed the antisemitic flyer to the Goyim Defense League (GDL). The GDL is a group of white supremacists led by Jon Minadeo II. The group travels the country harassing Jewish communities with antisemitic flyer drops.

The resident in question — Donald William Snyder, 84 — has been putting up controversial signs near his Browns Valley Road residence for years. The signs over the years have stated Snyder’s right-wing political views, much of the time based on current news topics, and have included false information connected to various conspiracy theories.