The Latest From @MacTaskForce
A recent JNS opinion piece raises serious questions about the General Union of Palestine Students chapter at San Francisco State University — the same group that recently hosted Mahmoud Khalil.
The concern is not simply that GUPS is anti-Israel. The broader General Union of Palestinian Students has long been described as the PLO’s transnational student organization, and Congress has formally recognized the PLO’s long history of terrorism and violence under U.S. law.
Students should not have to wonder whether student organizations operating openly on campus have historical or organizational ties to movements linked to terrorism and the glorification of violence.
Universities have a responsibility to ensure that campuses remain places for education and dialogue — not platforms for extremism.
A video circulating from CCNY’s “People’s Graduation” shows an event that appeared less like a celebration of academic achievement and more like a political rally centered on radical activism.
One speaker appeared to defend Tarek Bazrouk, who was sentenced in federal court for hate crimes after repeatedly assaulting Jewish victims at Israel/Hamas war related protests in New York.
The same speaker also praised former CCNY SJP president Hadeeqa Malik, who was suspended and barred from CUNY campuses after highly publicized controversy surrounding her campus activism.
The most troubling message was broader than any one person: the framing of universities as training grounds for radical activism.
Graduation should mark the beginning of students’ contribution to society, not the normalization of extremism, intimidation, or hate masquerading as justice.
🎥: stustudio_insta
The U.S. Treasury Department has removed UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese from its sanctions list. This move comes after a federal judge temporarily blocked the sanctions last week.
Albanese has repeatedly faced accusations from U.S. officials and watchdog groups of antisemitism and extreme bias against Israel.
This decision likely means Albanese will be able to enter the United States and will no longer be barred from engaging in banking within the country.
After an Israeli flag was burned during a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Hamburg, Germany, the city responded by raising an Israeli flag over City Hall in solidarity.
At a time when both Jewish symbols and Israelis themselves are increasingly targeted across Europe, gestures like this matter. Burning flags and intimidating Jewish communities is unacceptable, and leaders willing to stand against it publicly deserve recognition.
Hamburg sent a clear message that antisemitic intimidation will not go unanswered.
🎥: middleast24
In Jerusalem, Jews, Muslims, Christians, and Druze marched side by side calling for peace, coexistence, and human dignity.
While extremists work to divide people by religion and identity, moments like these remind the world that partnership and shared humanity are stronger than hate.
The future of peace will be built by people willing to stand together.
🎥: blackjewishmagic
During testimony before Australia’s Royal Commission on Antisemitism, Rabbi Menachem Dadon described what it’s like for Jews walking through Sydney on Shabbat: antisemitic abuse is commonly hurled their way, even when they’re with their children. “Free Palestine” and “F*** Jews” are two typical things a Jewish family will hear as they walk to Temple.
Rabbi Dadon, whose daughter was wounded in the Bondi terror attack in December, explained that Jews are now forced to explain the hatred they hear in public to their kids. No child should grow up an environment where they are subject to unchecked bigotry in the streets.
When hatred toward Jews becomes routine in public spaces, societies have a responsibility to confront it and combat it.
UK student and activist Jonathan Frisher appeared on Good Morning Britain where he emphasized power of education in combating antisemitism. After experiencing bullying and harassment because he was Jewish, he pushed his school to introduce lessons on antisemitism alongside Holocaust education, and some of the very students who targeted him later apologized.
Education won’t solve the problem alone but it’s a step towards fostering an environment where Jewish identity is understood, respected, and protected.
Holocaust and October 7th denialism are part of the same dangerous effort to erase Jewish suffering, distort history, and strip Jews of credibility when they’re attacked.
Fatah official Qadura Fares accusing Israel of exaggerating the Holocaust and fabricating October 7th documentation with “unscrupulous” filmmakers is not political discourse, it’s extremist propaganda.
The atrocities of October 7th were documented by survivors, victims, first responders, medical professionals, Hamas bodycam footage, and countless eyewitnesses. Attempts to rewrite or deny those crimes should be condemned everywhere, especially by anyone claiming to support peace or human rights.
