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public service along with these other television providers, giving you a front row seat to democracy. ashington journal." we are joined by amy spitalnick, the chief executive officer of the jewish council for public affairs. welcome. guest: thank you for having me. host: can you talk about your organization and how you are funded? guest: the jewish council for public affairs is a nearly 80-year-old jewish national organization founded specifically because we understand that jewish community is best in societies that are inclusive, and we are in deep relationship with our neighbors, in which we are fighting against all people, particularly in this moment, we are focused on protecting democracy, fighting not just anti-semitism but the

ways it connects to all other forms of hate in this moment. right now, given the horrific surge following october 7, we know that it is more important than ever. we are funded by individuals and organizations around the country. people who recognize the urgency of building deep relationships between the jewish community and our neighbors. in particular, we work closer with jewish community councils, which there are 125 across the country and we are supported by them and by local federations, as well. host: i will put on the screen the rise in anti-semitic incidents across the u.s.. here it is, a total of 300 12 anti-semitic incidents recorded between october 7 and the 23r 190 reinked to the war in israel and gaza. overall increase of 400% over the same time last year, according to the antidefamation

league. what do you attribute that rise to? how was the jewish community reacting? guest: look, even before october 7, we saw a record level anti-semitism across the country. part of that is the result of how anti-semitism and broader extremism has increased normalized in our society over the last few years. after october 7, we saw such a horrific increase year-over-year because we were already starting from a place of crisis, but particularly over the last four weeks, what we have seen is now jews, jewish institutions, jewish property being targeted because of the actions of the israeli government, so people are blaming jews around the country and world because they hypothetically disagree with the actions of the israeli

government, but in targeting jews with direct explicit anti-semitism. some of it is happening on college campuses, including a student arrested this week for making death threats against jewish classmates. we have seen the viral video from places like cooper union and others in which students were surrounded, barricaded into a library. in that case, other students were attacked physically in other places, and more broadly we are seeing everything from anti-semitic graffiti to other hate crimes and attacks against jews and jewish institutions that go well beyond simply criticizing israel into direct attacks on jewish people and property and organizations in reaction to the actions of this really government. host: this is what i would like to investigate more with you as

far as drawing the line between legitimate criticism of israeli policies and anti-semitism. how do you define anti-semitism? guest: i think it is important to understand anti-semitism itself in order to understand what the line is in this moment between criticism of israel and israeli policies and the explicit anti-semitism we are seeing. both of those things are happening in public debate now. there is debate over israeli policy and that is legitimate. in september, not that long ago, i stood outside with other jewish leaders and rabbis, criticizing israel's antidemocratic reforms they were making, so there is plenty of legitimate criticism and debate to be had over israeli policy, whether it is the policy like

democratic reforms or actions and all of the above. but what we are seeing now is something that goes far beyond that in many cases, so we are seeing people effectively saying jewish people and institutions should be targeted as a result of these actions. we are seeing people saying israel should be wiped off the face of the earth, language from others that specifically talk about wiping jews out of the region. and so much more that goes beyond simple criticism or debate over israeli actions and policies. it is crucial we draw this line for so many reasons, including to protect speech and civil liberties here in the united states. also, so we can fully identify, confront and hold accountable the real machinations of anti-semitism that we are seeing happening in places that in turn lead to jews feeling unsafe on

college campuses and communities around the country and across the globe, frankly. host: i will show a definition of anti-semitism from the holocaust remembrancance "anti-semitism is a certain perception of jews whi be expressed as hatred toward jews, rhetorical beliefs directed toward jewish or non-jewish individuals or toward their property and religious facilities." i invite our viewers to join us in the conversation. democrats, (202)-748-8000. republicans, (202)-748-8001. independents, (202)-748-8002. we also have a line for jewish citizens, (202)-748-8003. going back to what is happening on college campuses at cornell,

arrested, if you could tell us what is going on there and what you see as the role of colleges in this conflict and what they should be doing. guest: cornell is one of the most egregious examples we have seen, in which over the weekend, a student was arrested and identified as a junior at the university. directly posting messages to threaten and kill his jewish classmates. the language was so boring that i do not need to repeat it get -- repeated here. what we saw there is a manifestation of the crime at college campuses in which jewish students are feeling increasingly unsafe. i was the leader and president of my fellow student group at my university a good amount of time ago when i was in college, and it feels like the world has changed dramatically in the years since.

what we are seeing are no longer only constructive debates around israeli policy, although i am sure that is happening, but, increasingly, the weight in which the conversation on israel and palestine has moved into vitriolic and dangerous language targeting jewish students in many corners. i would like to be clear that we also know that muslim, arab-american students and palestinian students are targeted, as well. we have an obligation to call that out. in particular, universities, college campuses all have an obligation to keep students safe. that is their fundamental responsibility under federal law, to protect the civil rights of their students. i was part of a meeting with the secretary of education and a number of others earlier this week, along with my fellow ceos of national jewish organizations and we specifically made clear that we expect the federal government to provide guidance

and requirements to universities , making clear their obligations in the moment and told him accountable if they cannot keep students safe. this is also true beyond college campuses and universities. we know k-12 schools are places where jewish students and other students are targeted in this moment, and they, too, have an obligation to keep students safe. and, frankly, parents are trying to figure out what to do. i am getting text messages from friends and colleagues asking if people should even send their kids to school because they are worried about them being targeted because they are jewish or arab-americans. none of this is ok or aligns with the values and responsibilities that our education system is supposed to be about. all of these institutions have an obligation to act to ensure our students are safe and in a productive and learning environment. host: the hill has this headline, the biden

administration outlines headlines to address anti-semitism on college campuses. does it go far enough? what is your response? guest: they were important first steps announced before the meeting we had monday, and there is more that needs to be done, just what we articulated to the secretary of education and other officials we met with on monday. they specifically committed to a two week timeline to get schools and universities even more resources. this is a moment that goes so far beyond the usual day today conversation over israel and palestine that goes beyond the crisis level, anti-semitism and the hate and violence we have seen. this requires an unprecedented response. i am grateful that they seemed receptive and understanding of that and eager to continue to work closely with them to ensure

those needs are addressed and implemented as soon as possible because with each passing day, we know students are increasingly at risk. host: let's talk to a caller in indianapolis, indiana. gene is an independent. caller: yes, how are you? i have a question, i would like to know why historically there has been so much anti-semitism or hatred towards the jewish people, just historically, from typical times to germans, hitler's, to hamas, what all the hatred towards jewish people? i will listen off-line. delay. -- thank you. guest: that is a great question, and i think it really cuts to the core of what we are talking about because we know that anti-semitism is a prejudice and bigotry against jewish people. but anti-semiti also uniquely functions as a conspiracy

theory, related to ideas of jewish control and power. you hear this manifesting in differentay you hear it right now, blaming jews for the actions of the israeli government and keeping this idea of a controlling entity that is responsle for everything terrible atappens in the world. for emple, what we saw in charlottesville six years ag the idea thatews are puppet sts orchestrating a replacement of the white race. and it is these conspiracy theories that are connected to ideas of control and power and go back not simply decades or centuries but millennia. they are some of the oldest forms of bigotry and speak to that precise millennial long cycle of anti-semitism that we have seen manifest over and over again. what we are seeing now is in certain ways but it is rooted in old hatred and conspiracy

theories that seek to blame jewish people, jewish power for everything terrible happening in our society. host: david in silver spring, maryland, independent nine. -- independent line. caller: i have a question for the lady. i have no war in this fight. the arabs do not -- i don't particularly care about the arabs because of slavery. and then i find out that the jews [indiscernible] and also there is a problem and that is why there is this problem in israel because of the jews from europe, those were not the only ones. isn't that the problem? guest: i am not even going to give credence to some of the conspiracy theories and bigotry rooted in that.

ashkenazi jews are jews, jews of colors are jews, the jewish community is incredibly diverse. until we recognize that and understand that every single jew is a jew, anti-semitism will only continue to fester. host: pat is a democrat in michigan. good morning. caller:. good morning. i don't have a question, just a comment. i would like to say, i was born and raised in detroit. detroit has germantown, chinatown, polk town, mexican town, all these different nationalities. i grew up with wide and varied people, and the culture, the restaurants, the seasons, celebrations, i just want to tell everybody, i do not

understand all the prejudice. this country was established, as far as i understand it, for everyone, anyone to come to and practice their religion or not. and why all of a sudden all these divisions are going on in a free nation for all is absolutely insane to me. to me, we are so gifted in this country to have such wide and varied cultures. and you can talk to your neighbor, who is a different nationality than you, and get to know their family, their celebrations for a time of year, christmas, or hanukkah, or whatever and you can travel to another country right next door

and you can travel to another country right in detroit. all this prejudice and hate, i do not understand it and do not want to understand it. to me, america is wide and varied and free for everyone. host: any comments? guest: i appreciate that. it is refreshing given the rhetoric in the last four weeks. i agree. the reason we are seeing, particularly record levels of anti-semitism and other forms of hate and violence are now, are multiple, but, particularly, we know that there are those who are exploiting this moment and crises like the ones in gaza, exploiting social media, to continue to seek to tear communities apart and to tell us

that somehow the safety of one community comes at the expense of another. and we know inherently that we are all safest in a society when we recognize our safety is in partnership and relationship with our neighbors, as different as we may be. that is the core of the idea, the center of our work at the jewish council for public affairs, but we are seeing some particularly over the last few weeks, exploit this crisis to try and tell us otherwise. a few days ago when the white house announced a really important islamic phobia national strategy to keep the muslim communities here, safe in the u.s., which came, of course, a number of months after announcing historic anti-semitism strategy, we saw some, including for politicians and others, eight specifically exploited the announcement to suggest it came at the expense of jewish safety. they are trying to suggest my

safety is a jewish woman cannot exist in a world where my muslim neighbors are safe in my arab-american neighbors are safe. that is simply false. we need to stop hitting the communities against one another and recognize that we are all safest and inclusive societies, where our neighbors are able to exercise their rights and live their lives safely and constructively. host: you mentioned at the u.s. national strategy to counter anti-semitism that came out in may of 20, 3, people can go to whitehouse.gov if people would like to read it. what does it propose and what impact has it had, if any? guest: it came out in late may, may is jewish-american heritage month. specifically, it includes a number of specific policy ideas intended to provide a whole of

society approach to countering anti-semitism, including everything from helping people better understand who jews are, jewish heritage and culture, to specific policies related to universities, k-12 schools, education around hate and bigotry, and includes a number of specific policies about inclusivity, making sure jews are treated inclusively in our society. it specifically seeks to counter the normalization of anti-semitism, something we have talked about this morning, the ways in which conspiracy theories, which are rooted in anti-semitism, have become increasingly normalized in politics and society and the rhetoric that so many are hearing, and the plan also specifically focuses on cross community solidarity,, recognizing that jewish safety

is linked to the safety of so many other communities, to the health and vibrancy of a multiracial democracy, and making sure that we are building those cross community relationships and bridges necessary for all of us to feel safe. this is a historic plan and i was grateful to have been involved, in the initial roundtable last year that led to the creation of the plan, and we are grateful the white house shouted out with they are announcing the plan, and there is so much work to do to make sure that it is implemented effectively, constructively and quickly, given the moment we are in, but the plan does provide a roadmap. if it is implemented and embraced in the way it can and must be, and quickly, it can be in to counter some of the real anti-semitism that we see come to a head right now, and i would also say, it will not simply

keep the jewish community safe with hopefully it will keep some money safe because of the ways in the way that it is connected to other forms of hate targeting black people, refugees, and so many others. host: nikki is calling us from austin, texas, independent. caller: thank you for taking my call. just three things really quickly, some of which she is saying. first of all, let me say, the bible are good sources of information, especially when people say religious regions are the motivations. you back to genesis, or if you can vote with actual orthodox jewish people, those are good sources of information from a historical perspective. and then when you mentioned getting along with our neighbors , again, when you go to genesis

16 and it mentions ishmael, the older son of abraham, and then israel, the grandson of abraham, whose original name was isaac, that is the root of a lot of things going on cross culturally, so i would encourage -- and i don't know if you have individuals in the organization as far as the more orthodox jewish people, but i would encourage bringing more of those people into the discussion so that when we have people from afar kind of commenting, we can hear from actual people who are professionally involved with understanding, where does this come from historically? a lot of people kind of see the bible as fiction in itself, when those of us who actually read the entire bible or jewish people who actually read the entire torah know better that it

is not fiction, and as you get deeper into some of these conversations, maybe we can then try to bring peace to everyone and not say that it is conspiracy but, no, it is actually based upon the truth. guest: if i can just, first of all, we work with all denominations of judaism in terms of our staff, partner organizations and jewish community. i do want to push back on the idea that somehow only orthodox jews are people who can speak to what judaism is, to the bible, the torah, any other form of jewish text. judaism and jewish people are remarkably diverse, including orthodox, including ashkenazi jews, jews of color. there have been a few callers who have leaned into the idea that judaism is defined or

jewish people are defined by only one type of jew. it is that thinking that leads to targeting us and hatred against jews because they are considered not sufficiently jewish or the good type of jew. it is important we push back against those when we narrowly defined judaism and the jewish people, and if we will ever effectively address anti-semitism, it is in recognizing the diversity of the jewish people. host: let's go to the republican line in indiana. david, good morning. caller: good morning. first of all, i would like to extend my feelings of the individuals who have been affected by recent war, and we hope that it works its way through quickly. my question is, i am curious what the situation was between the palestinian and the jewish

country prior to this invasion? what are the walls around the city built for? i am just curious. and i hear about how the palestinians were kind of walled in and had only one way out, one way in, we are controlled, also, the way israel, from what i understand, has taken over lands and other places that go on hikes, etc., etc., so what was the status of israel and palestine prior to the invasion? guest: it is 8:29, so i don't think we can get into the full history of conflict in the one minute we have left in the segment. but i will say that since 1948, the establishment of the state of israel, there has been quite a lot that has happened between

the israeli people and the palestinian people. both people have deep connections to the land historically, some religiously, and the only path forward is one in which both people can live side-by-side together in peace. i believe there are a two state solution, which ensures there is israel and provides palestinian people with their own dignity and rights, as well. it feels this moment that that is farther off than ever, but i also believe in moments of crisis, it is a clear spotlight on how urgent the future is, and, so, rather than rehashing the entire history of the conflict, it is important to understand that these ties people have to the land and recognize the only path forward is one in which they can live side-by-side in peace and security. host: we will try to get one more call, billion north carolina, republican -- billy in north carolina, republican.

caller: good morning. i am an old guy from north carolina. i just wanted the opinion that all the folks i have been watching since this morning, the folks calling in, criticizing everything israel has been doing, we have these folks over here and it is kind of embarrassing. i hear a lot of callers that are passionate. if they have the plights of the palestinians, which apparently they just came out from the west bank, so in support, the palestinian people, in support of hamas, the flags, everything else flying in the air, if this people are so passionate -- i, for one, if they want to go fight >>