Ep. 214: A handbook on how to fight back against the antisemites

About this episode

The episode discusses strategies for combating antisemitism in the wake of recent events in Israel.

Jews around the world are reeling from the unprecedented surge of antisemitism that followed the Hamas-led Palestinian Arab attacks on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. They may feel helpless when confronted by the way the Jew-haters have mainstreamed tropes of antisemitism in order to demonize Israel and its supporters. But, says JNS editor-in-chief, the answer to this problem is not to give up. Jews don’t merely need to wake up and fight back but to do so effectively and win. He’s joined in this week’s episode of Think Twice by JNS columnist Melanie Phillips, who has written a handbook for doing just that, titled, Fighting the Hate: A Handbook for Jews Under Siege. According to Phillips, many Jews have responded to the post-Oct. 7 tsunami of hate with shock and confusion. She says that Jews have an absolute duty to stand up against lies, against injustice, and to tell the truth. “It seemed to me that there was much that could be done if people had the right ideas about how best to go about this, " said Phillips. “And I thought, and I still think, that the organized Jewish world in the diaspora didn't really have a strategy.” Instead of playing defense, Phillips believes the…

People in this episode

Host: Jonathan Tobin

Guest: Melanie Phillips

Topics covered

• antisemitism
• Jewish identity
• Hamas propaganda
• Jewish response
• conflict
• activism

Keywords

• antisemitism
• Hamas
• Israel
• Jewish activism
• Melanie Phillips
• Fighting the Hate
• Jewish identity

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: JNS, Hamas

Books & works: Fighting the Hate: A Handbook for Jews Under Siege

Places: Israel, Palestinian

More episodes of Think Twice with Jonathan Tobin

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• Ep. 220: American’s rageful Jacobins are the real threat to democracy · May 21, 2026 · 1h 1m
• Ep. 219: Can Israel Beat the World’s Biggest Smear Campaign? · May 15, 2026 · 1h 9m
• Ep. 218: Why won’t Jewish stars speak up against antisemitism? · May 7, 2026 · 1h 2m