1/ On the somber Jewish holiday of Tisha B’Av (July 23, 2026)—as we mourn the destruction of our ancient Temples—a tragic stabbing attack shook NYC. A visibly Jewish man in a kippah and an Asian man were targeted in an assault accompanied by shouts of “Allahu Akbar.” 🧵
2/ Speaking out against NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s failure to take accountability for the violent antisemitism stoked by his nonstop anti-Israel rhetoric, I shared commentary on public safety. The reaction wasn't a policy debate; it revealed how toxic online hate has become.
3/ The response fell into predictable, hostile patterns:
- Hostile Deflection: Shouting down a domestic hate crime with "What about Gaza?", celebrating the violence ("Good"), or minimizing the Jewish targeting because an Asian man was also hurt.
4/ More…
- Denial & Conspiracy: Brushing off real-world trauma with apathy ("Don't care") or pushing absurd claim that targeted hate crime was "false flag."
- Classic Bigotry: Trolling with physical mockery (“big Jewish nose”)/minimizing trauma ("Jews crying victim again").
5/ When physical violence against Jews is written off as a mere "mental health" crisis while internet mobs rush to justify or mock the targeting, it proves antisemitism has been deeply normalized in modern public discourse.
6/ Simultaneously, the digital backlash exposed a parallel wave of extremist anti-Muslim rhetoric. Fringe commentators weaponized the attacker's religious phrasing to generalize an entire community, rather than focusing on actual accountability or security threats.
7/ We see this kind of rhetoric elsewhere too. Conservative figures close to President Trump, like Laura Loomer—currently in Ukraine interviewing President Zelensky—recently remarked: “One thing I really love about Ukraine is I haven’t seen a single Muslim here.”
8/ This rhetoric is deeply problematic, especially coming from someone who positions herself as a strong pro-Israel voice in the MAGA ecosystem. It manufactures unnecessary enemies and deepens societal divisions.
9/ Polarization is unhealthy. Documenting this vitriol proves the hard truth: extreme hostility—whether antisemitic or Islamophobic—isn't hidden anymore. It’s loud, organized, and normalized.
10/ Most Americans are moderate and fundamentally rejecting of this hatred. It's time to call out both antisemitism and extremism in all its forms and demand better from our public discourse. (End)
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