Anti-Semitism

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Has there been an uptick in anti-Semitism? Carlos Galindo-Elvira, the Anti- Defamation League’s Arizona regional director, will talk about anti-Semitism nationwide and here in Arizona.

TED SIMONS: COMING UP NEXT ON "ARIZONA HORIZON," ARE WE SEEING A RISE IN ANTI-SEMITISM IN THE VALLEY?
TED SIMONS: ALSO TONIGHT, CONSTITUTIONAL ORIGINALISM DEFINED IN LIGHT OF THE U.S. SUPREME COURT NOMINEE. AND A BEST SELLING AUTHOR AND FAMILY COUNSELOR TALKS ABOUT THE TEENAGE MIND. THOSE STORIES NEXT ON "ARIZONA HORIZON."
ANNOUNCER: "ARIZONA HORIZON" IS MADE POSSIBLE BY CONTINUED CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE FRIENDS OF ARIZONA PBS, MEMBERS OF YOUR PBS STATION. THANK YOU.
TED SIMONS: GOOD EVENING AND WELCOME TO "ARIZONA HORIZON." I'M TED SIMONS. THE U.S. SENATE TODAY CONFIRMED BETSY DeVOS AS EDUCATION SECRETARY. VICE PRESIDENT MIKE PENCE CAST THE TIE-BREAKING VOTE FOR CONFIRMATION AFTER THE SENATE DEADLOCKED. JOHN McCAIN AND JEFF FLAKE VOTED FOR DeVOS. FLAKE ISSUED THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT, BETSY DeVOS HAS BEEN AN ADVOCATE FOR SCHOOL VOICE AND BELIEVES EVERY CHILD SHOULD HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO RECEIVE A QUALITY EDUCATION REGARDLESS OF ZIP CODE. I WAS PLEASED TO VOTE FOR HER CONFIRMATION AND I LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH HER TO ROLL BACK THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT'S REACH INTO EDUCATION AND ALLOW STATES AND LOCALITIES TO DETERMINE WHAT'S BEST FOR THEIR STUDENTS. DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSMAN GRIJALVA ISSUED A STATEMENT EXPRESSING HIS DISAPPOINTMENT, QUOTE, THE VICTIMS OF MS. DeVOS' TENURE WILL BE CHILDREN WHO HAVE NO ABILITY TO FIGHT BACK, BUT THE IMPACT WILL SCAR OUR SOCIETY AS A WHOLE. STUMPING OUR ABILITY TO ACCOMPLISH GREAT FEATS AND SOLIDIFYING THE UNITED STATES AS A TWO-TIER SOCIETY, THOSE BORN INTO A FAMILY THAT CAN AFFORD A HIGH-QUALITY EDUCATION AND EVERYONE ELSE.
TED SIMONS: SWASTIKAS WERE SPRAY PAINTED IN PARADISE VALLEY LAST WEEK AND THERE HAVE BEEN A NUMBER OF REPORTS OF ANTI-SEMITISM NATIONWIDE. JOINING US, WELCOME TO ARIZONA HORIZON. SWASTIKAS ON SIGNS OUTSIDE THIS PARADISE VALLEY -- TALK TO US ABOUT THIS.
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: SO WHAT WE FOUND OUT THERE WERE SWASTIKAS PAINTED NOT ONLY ON SCHOOL SIGNS, BUT ALSO ADJACENT TO PUBLIC PROPERTY IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD IN PARADISE VALLEY THAT HAS A HIGH JEWISH POPULATION.
TED SIMONS: OKAY. SO THE ADL, YOUR GROUP, ASSISTED IN THE CASE. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: WHAT THAT MEANS IS THAT FAMILIES WILL REACH OUT TO US, PARENTS, CONCERNED CITIZENS AND THEY'LL REPORT THE INCIDENT. WE IN TURN MAKE INQUIRIES ON BEHALF OF THOSE FAMILIES WITH SCHOOL OFFICIALS AND PUBLIC SAFETY. IN THIS CASE, BOTH RESPONDED RESPONSIVELY AND RESPONSIBLY IN THE REMOVAL OF THE SWASTIKAS AND ALSO PARADISE VALLEY POLICE DEPARTMENT TAKING THE REPORT.
TED SIMONS: IN GENERAL, HOW DO MUNICIPALITIES HANDLE SUCH INCIDENTS?
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: MOST POLICE DEPARTMENTS, THEY TAKE IT SERIOUSLY. OUR EXPERIENCE SO FAR, AND I'VE BEEN WITH ADL FOR ABOUT EIGHT MONTHS NOW, WHETHER IT'S THE CITY OF PHOENIX, CHANDLER OR IN THIS CASE PARADISE VALLEY, THEY MOVE ON IT, THEY ACT ON IT AND SEND A MESSAGE THEY DO NOT TOLERATE THIS TYPE OF BEHAVIOR.

TED SIMONS: IS THERE SOMETHING YOU'D LIKE TO SEE MORE FROM COMMUNITIES AS A WHOLE?
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: I THINK WHAT IS IMPORTANT IS ENSURING THERE'S A MESSAGE OF SAFETY AND SECURITY FOR THE WHOLE COMMUNITY. CRIMES LIKE THIS HATEFUL ACT OF VANDALISM ONLY SERVE A PURPOSE REALLY OF FEAR AND NOT JUST FOR THE JEWISH COMMUNITY, BUT FOR THE GENERAL COMMUNITY BECAUSE NOW IT MEANS IT CAN HAPPEN IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
TED SIMONS: I WAS GOING TO ASK. I HEAR WHEN THESE KINDS OF THINGS HAPPEN, IT'S NOT JUST TO ONE SCHOOL, IT'S NOT JUST TO ONE GROUP THERE. IT'S BASICALLY LOTS OF SCHOOLS AND FOLKS IMPACTED. TALK TO US ABOUT THAT.
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: RIGHT. IN THIS CASE, AT CHEROKEE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, IT IMPACTED THAT SCHOOL AND THE KIDS THERE. IT IMPACTED THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND THE FAMILIES THERE. AND IT IMPACTED THE COMMUNITY -- THE JEWISH COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE BECAUSE THE SWASTIKA REPRESENTS A VERY DARK AND PAINFUL PERIOD FOR THE JEWISH COMMUNITY AND FOR THE WORLD AS A WHOLE. AND TO SEE THAT HATEFUL SYMBOL SO CLOSE TO YOUR HOME, SO CLOSE TO YOUR CHILDREN, IT IS SOMETHING IS THAT CAN BE QUITE FRIGHTFUL.
TED SIMONS: WE'VE HAD OVER A DOZEN JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTERS AROUND THE COUNTRY RECEIVE RECENT BOMB THREATS. ARE THESE LET'S START WITH THE VALLEY. ARE WE SEEING MORE?
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: YES, TO BOTH. THERE'S AN UPTICK.
TED SIMONS: WHY?
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: WE'RE COMING OFF A HOTLY CONTESTED ELECTION SEASON. THINGS WERE SAID AND THERE ARE CERTAIN POPULATIONS OF GROUPS OF INDIVIDUALS, EXTREMISTS AND HATE GROUPS THAT FEEL EMBOLDENED AND FEEL THAT IT'S OKAY TO -- TO MAKE THESE TYPE OF STATEMENTS WHETHER IT'S PAINTING A SWASTIKA OR SENDING A FAX WITH A SWASTIKA OR MAKING THESE TYPE OF BOMB THREATS AT DIFFERENT JCCs AROUND THE COUNTRY. ADL, WE TAKE IT SERIOUSLY AND WE WORK WITH LOCAL COMMUNITIES, WE WORK WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT. AND ONE OF THE THINGS WE ARE DOING IS WORKING CLOSER WITH FBI ON SECURITY FOR JEWISH INSTITUTIONS.
TED SIMONS: YOU MENTIONED THE ELECTION. IT'S INTERESTING. I DON'T KNOW HOW TO WORK THE EQUATION, BECAUSE THE NEW ADMINISTRATION SEEMS VERY PRO-ISRAEL, PRO PRESIDENT NETANYAHU. YET SOME ARE SAYING THERE ARE THOSE FOLKS, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU AGREE OR NOT, THOSE FOLKS VERY MUCH PRO THE ADMINISTRATION ARE NOT OKAY -- NOT OKAY WITH THIS KIND OF STUFF, BUT LESS VIGILANT ON THESE KINDS OF THINGS. I DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT.
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: ANTI-SEMITISM EXISTS AND IT'S NEVER GONE AWAY. IT JUST SEEMS IT'S EXPLODED MORE ON THE SCENE THESE DAYS. AND FOR US AT ADL, WE BELIEVE THAT OUR JOB AND OUR MISSION IS TO NOT JUST PROTECT THE JEWISH PEOPLE FROM DEFAMATION, BUT ALSO TO SECURE FAIR TREATMENT AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. WHILE WE BELIEVE IN A SAFE AND SECURE JEWISH COMMUNITY, WE BELIEVE THAT FOR ALL COMMUNITIES WHETHER THEY'RE CATHOLIC, MUSLIM OR IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES.

TED SIMONS: AND AS FAR AS TECHNOLOGY IS CONCERNED, IT JUST SEEMS AGAIN THAT TECHNOLOGY, SOCIAL MEDIA, THESE SORTS OF THINGS, IT'S JUST UNLEASHING SOME OF THE MOST HATEFUL STUFF IMAGINABLE. IS THAT A FACTOR HERE?
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: RIGHT. DECADES AGO, CROSSES WERE BEING BURNED AND NOW TWITTER IS BEING BURNED UP WITH HATEFUL MESSAGES TOWARDS NOT ONLY JEWS, MEXICANS, MUSLIMS AND OTHER VULNERABLE POPULATIONS. THERE, TOO, ADL IS WORKING STRONGLY ACROSS THE UNITED STATES. IN FACT, WE JUST HIRED A DIRECTOR IN SILICON VALLEY THAT WILL WORK WITH DIFFERENT SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS AND OTHERS ON TAMPERING DOWN THIS TYPE OF BEHAVIOR ON SOCIAL MEDIA. SO WE KNOW THAT CYBER HATE IS PERVASIVE, BUT WE'RE NOT GOING TO COMPLAIN ABOUT IT, WE'RE GOING TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT TO ADVANCE OUR MISSION BOTH HERE IN ARIZONA AND ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
TED SIMONS: AND HERE IN ARIZONA, DO YOU SEE THESE KIND OF COMING IN TIDES, COMING IN WAVES, OR IS IT GOING UP THIS WAY OR GOING -- IT JUST SEEMS LIKE WE HEAR ABOUT THEM AND THEN THERE'S A PAUSE, AND ANOTHER WAVE COMING THROUGH.
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: WEEKLY, WE'VE SEEN SOME TYPE OF INCIDENT. BEFORE HANUKKAH WHETHER IT WAS INCIDENT IN THE WEST VALLEY WITH THE DESECRATION OF A MENORAH. OR IN CHANDLER THE DESECRATION OF ANOTHER MENORAH, SOME BUSINESSES WITH SWASTIKAS. I WANT TO SAY TO YOU THAT ANTI-SEMITISM ISN'T JUST SOMETHING HAPPENING IN EUROPE OR SOMEWHERE ELSE. IT'S HAPPENING HERE. ON SOCIAL MEDIA, BUT IT'S ALSO HAPPENING IN SCHOOLYARDS. WE'RE GETTING REPORTS THAT CHILDREN ARE BEING TOLD THINGS ABOUT THE HOLOCAUST OR ABOUT WHO THEY ARE AS JEWS. IT'S COMPOUNDED IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS WHETHER YOU SEE IT ON THE NEWS OR HEAR IT ON THE RADIO. THERE'S ALSO THOSE STORIES YOU'RE NOT HEARING ABOUT.
TED SIMONS: AND IT'S INTERESTING, THERE'S A CLIMATE NOW EVERYONE FEELS LIKE THEY CAN SAY WHATEVER THEY WANT TO SAY AND NO ONE SHOULD TAKE ANY OFFENSE TO ANYTHING. BUT THERE ARE THINGS YOU HAVE TO WATCH WHAT YOU SAY. GOOD TO HAVE YOU HERE.
CARLOS GALINDO-ELVIRA: THANK YOU SO MUCH.
TED SIMONS: YOU'RE WATCHING "ARIZONA HORIZON." STAY WITH US FOR A DISCUSSION ON THE JUDICIAL PHILOSOPHY OF PRESIDENT TRUMP'S SUPREME COURT NOMINEE.

Carlos Galindo-Elvira, the Anti- Defamation League's Arizona regional director

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