An antisemitic demonstration in Florida. Source: Screenshot.

(Article by JONATHAN S. TOBIN- February 24, 2023)

Far-right hate groups have got the Jewish community scared and with good reason. After the murderous synagogue shootings in Pittsburgh in 2018 and Poway in 2019, extremist antisemitic hate ceased being a theoretical problem. Random viral videos of hateful acts and speech, vandalism as well as those public events in which white supremacists and their allies are able to generate publicity—like the August 2017 neo-Nazi “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Va.—have all combined to create the impression that such groups not only present a credible threat to Jewish security but that they have considerable support.

In this context, the effort by a network of neo-Nazi groups to promote a “National Day of Hate” aimed at harassing and threatening Jews on Saturday, Feb. 25, has attracted the notice of both the organized Jewish world as well as law enforcement in places like New York City, Chicago and elsewhere.