>> Sreenivasan: LAST MONTH, AS

THE LATEST WAR BETWEEN ISRAEL

AND HAMAS ESCALATED, A WAVE OF

ANGER DIRECTED AT JEWS SWEPT

ACROSS THE UNITED STATES, WITH

WATCHDOG GROUPS REPORTING A

SHARP INCREASE IN ANTI-SEMITIC

ATTACKS.

PBS NEWSHOUR SPECIAL

CORRESPONDENT SIMON OSTROVSKY

SAT DOWN WITH RABBI JILL JACOBS,

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE HUMAN

RIGHTS ORGANIZATION T'RUAH.

THE CONVERSATION IS PART OF

OUR ONGOING SERIES, "EXPLORING

HATE: ANTI-SEMITISM, RACISM,

AND EXTREMISM."

>> Reporter: OVER THE COURSE OF

THE LAST OUTBREAK OF VIOLENCE

THAT WE SAW IN ISRAEL AND THE

OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN

TERRITORIES, WE ALSO SAW AN

OUTBREAK OF ANTI-SEMITIC ATTACKS

HERE IN THE UNITED STATES, AND

ACTUALLY ACROSS THE WORLD.

WHAT DO YOU THINK CAUSED THAT?

>> WELL, THE OUTBREAK OF ANTI-

SEMITISM WAS REALLY, REALLY

TROUBLING.

WE SAW, FOR EXAMPLE, JEWS WHO

WERE JUST EATING SUSHI IN L.A.,

WHO ARE ATTACKED ON THE STREET,

OR ATTACKS IN THE DIAMOND

DISTRICT IN NEW YORK, AND LOTS

OF VANDALISM ON SYNAGOGUES

ACROSS THE UNITED STATES.

FOR SOME PEOPLE, ISRAEL

REPRESENTS THE JEWISH PEOPLE.

AND IT'S IMPORTANT TO SAY, FIRST

OF ALL, ABOUT ANTI-SEMITISM,

THAT ANTI-SEMITISM IS A 2,000-

PLUS-YEAR-OLD HATRED OF JEWS.

IT'S A HATRED THAT SAYS THAT--

IT'S BASICALLY A GIANT

CONSPIRACY THEORY THAT SUGGESTS

THAT JEWS ARE SOME KIND OF

NEFARIOUS FORCE WITHIN SOCIETY,

THAT ARE TRYING TO UNDERMINE

SOCIETY FROM THE INSIDE.

>> Reporter: ACCORDING TO THE

ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE, THEY

TALLIED A 75% INCREASE IN

ANTI-SEMITIC ATTACKS IN THE

UNITED STATES DURING THE LATEST

ISRAEL-GAZA CONFLICT.

DO YOU THINK THAT THOSE ATTACKS

AGAINST JEWS IN THE UNITED

STATES AND OTHER PARTS OF THE

WORLD ARE SIMILAR TO THE SORT OF

ISLAMOPHOBIC ATTACKS THAT WE'VE

SEEN AGAINST INNOCENT MUSLIMS IN

THE AFTERMATH OF, YOU KNOW,

SEPTEMBER 11th, OR THE SAN

BERNARDINO SHOOTING, OR OTHER

EVENTS THAT PEOPLE ASSOCIATE

WITH MUSLIMS AND ISLAM?

>> PEOPLE DEFINITELY HAVE ALL

SORTS OF STEREOTYPES THAT GROW

OUT OF WORLD EVENTS, SO

ABSOLUTELY AFTER SEPTEMBER 11th,

AS YOU MENTIONED, AND AFTER

OTHER EVENTS INVOLVING MUSLIMS,

WE SAW-- WE SAW, UNFORTUNATELY,

ISLAMOPHOBIC ATTACKS AGAINST

MUSLIMS.

WE'VE ALSO SEEN IT IN THE

UNITED STATES OVER COVID.

WE'VE SEEN ATTACKS ON ASIAN

AMERICANS IN THE STREET BECAUSE

OF PEOPLE'S ANGER ABOUT THE

CHINESE GOVERNMENT.

AND SO THAT IS VERY COMMON THAT,

UNFORTUNATELY, SOME PEOPLE SEE A

NEWS EVENT HAPPENING IN SOME

COUNTRY AND DECIDE TO ATTACK

PEOPLE WHO, EITHER RIGHTLY OR

WRONGLY, THEY ASSOCIATE WITH

THAT COUNTRY.

>> Reporter: AND, YOU KNOW,

GIVEN THAT THIS IS A PATTERN

THAT WE'VE SEEN DEVELOP OVER

TIME-- AND OF COURSE, YOU KNOW,

WE CAN'T BLAME THE ATTACKS ON

JEWS IN THE UNITED STATES AND

ELSEWHERE ON ANYBODY BUT THE

ATTACKERS--

BUT AT THE SAME TIME, ISRAEL IS

A COUNTRY THAT PUTS ITSELF OUT

THERE IN ORDER TO PROTECT JEWS.

SHOULD THEY BE TAKING INTO

CONSIDERATION THE DIASPORA AND

WHAT THE EFFECTS OF THEIR

GOVERNMENT'S ACTIONS ARE ON JEWS

LIVING OUTSIDE OF ISRAEL?

>> SO, ISRAEL IS SUPPOSED TO BE

A REFUGE FOR JEWS.

IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE A PLACE THAT

KEEPS JEWS SAFE.

IT IS A PLACE WHERE ALMOST HALF

OF THE WORLD'S JEWISH POPULATION

LIVES.

AND IN THAT REGARD, ISRAEL DOES

HAVE RESPONSIBILITY BOTH TO JEWS

AND OTHERS WHO LIVE EITHER--

WHO ARE EITHER CITIZENS OF

ISRAEL, WHO ARE-- OR WHO ARE

UNDER ITS JURISDICTION, AS WELL

AS TO JEWS AROUND THE WORLD.

SO, BEFORE WE EVEN TALK ABOUT

HOW ISRAEL'S IMAGE AFFECTS JEWS

AROUND THE WORLD, THE MOST

IMPORTANT THING IS THE HUMAN

RIGHTS OF THOSE 14 MILLION OR SO

PEOPLE WHO ARE LIVING THERE.

AND ISRAEL IS EVERY DAY

VIOLATING ITS HUMAN RIGHTS

OBLIGATIONS TOWARD THE PEOPLE

WHO ARE CITIZENS AND WHO ARE

LIVING UNDER OCCUPATION.

FIRST AND FOREMOST, THE PEOPLE

LIVING UNDER OCCUPATION WHO

DON'T HAVE BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS,

LIKE THE RIGHT TO CITIZENSHIP IN

A STATE, THE RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF

MOVEMENT, SELF-DETERMINATION.

THOSE ARE RIGHTS THAT JEWS WANT

FOR OURSELVES, AND SO WE HAVE TO

WANT THEM FOR OTHER PEOPLE.

AND BEYOND THAT, THERE IS A LOT

OF ANXIETY FROM THE ISRAELI

GOVERNMENT ABOUT THE

RELATIONSHIP WITH JEWS LIVING

OUTSIDE OF ISRAEL.

THERE IS AN ANXIETY THAT JEWS

LIVING OUTSIDE OF ISRAEL ARE

GOING TO ABANDON ISRAEL, AND

THERE'S LOTS OF ATTEMPTS TO TRY

TO PUSH BACK ON THAT.

THE NETANYAHU GOVERNMENT DIDN'T

UNDERSTAND ITS IMPACT ON JEWS

LIVING OUTSIDE OF ISRAEL.

THE AMERICAN JEWISH COMMUNITY,

WE KNOW, LARGELY FEELS CONNECTED

TO THE STATE OF ISRAEL,

CONSIDERS ITSELF GENERALLY

SUPPORTIVE OF THE LONG-TERM

SECURITY AND THE LONGEVITY OF

THE STATE OF ISRAEL, AND, BY AND

LARGE, IS AGAINST THE

OCCUPATION, AGAINST SETTLEMENTS,

AND FOR A TWO-STATE SOLUTION.

SO-- A SECURE STATE OF ISRAEL

LIVING SIDE BY SIDE WITH A

SECURE STATE OF PALESTINE.

SO, THAT'S WHERE THE AMERICAN

JEWISH COMMUNITY IS.

AND SOME OF THE ISRAELI

GOVERNMENT'S ATTEMPTS TO CHANGE

ISRAEL'S PUBLIC PERCEPTION

MISSED THE MARK, BECAUSE THEY

DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT ACTUALLY

WHAT'S DAMAGING ISRAEL'S PUBLIC

PERCEPTION IS THE OCCUPATION

THAT HAS GONE ON FOR MORE THAN

FIVE DECADES.

AND IF WE COULD COME TO AN END

OF THE OCCUPATION WITH A

NEGOTIATED SOLUTION THAT

GUARANTEED THE SAFETY OF JEWS

AND PALESTINIANS, THEN FOR THE

MOST PART, A LOT OF THE ANGER AT

ISRAEL WOULD GO AWAY.

>> Reporter: DO YOU THINK THAT

THIS GOVERNMENT-- POTENTIALLY

THIS NEW NAFTALI BENNETT

GOVERNMENT-- MIGHT DO THINGS

DIFFERENTLY THAN THE PREVIOUS

NETANYAHU ADMINISTRATION?

>> WELL, THIS NEW GOVERNMENT IS

VERY NEW, SO WE DON'T KNOW WHAT

IT'S GOING TO DO.

WE DON'T HAVE ANY ILLUSIONS THAT

THIS IS A GOVERNMENT THAT'S

GOING TO END THE OCCUPATION OR

THIS IS A GOVERNMENT THAT IS

GOING TO TRANSFORM ISRAEL INTO

THE BEACON OF HUMAN RIGHTS THAT

WE'D ALL LIKE TO SEE.

BUT IT IS A NECESSARY STEP TO

MOVE AWAY FROM THE NETANYAHU

GOVERNMENT INTO THE NEXT ERA OF

ISRAELI POLITICS.

SO, EVEN IF YOU'RE NOT ENDING

THE OCCUPATION, YOU CAN STOP THE

EXPANSION OF SETTLEMENTS.

YOU CAN STOP THE EVICTIONS OF

FAMILIES FROM SHEIKH JARRAH AND

SILWAN, ALSO IN EAST JERUSALEM.

SO, THERE ARE STEPS YOU CAN TAKE

TO AT LEAST MAKE THINGS NOT GET

WORSE.

SO I WOULD HOPE THAT THIS

GOVERNMENT WOULD DO THAT.

AND HOPEFULLY THAT IT WOULD SHOW

THAT IT'S ACTUALLY COMMITTED TO

ULTIMATELY A NEGOTIATED SOLUTION

THAT WILL PROTECT EVERYBODY'S

HUMAN RIGHTS.

>> Reporter: RABBI JILL JACOBS,

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING

US.

>> THANK YOU SO MUCH.