Has New York Fallen for Antisemitism?
“New York has fallen. It’s over. I’m leaving.”
Those were the words that shattered a once-supportive WhatsApp group of Jewish artists and filmmakers. The group, formed after October 7 as antisemitism began spreading through creative industries, had become a rare refuge for Jewish voices who refused to bow to ideological conformity. But that weekend, a simple question divided everyone: Is New York still good for the Jews—or is it time to leave?
For many, the answer was clear. They no longer felt safe. They’d lost friends, jobs, and even physical safety for wearing a Star of David. One artist described being shoved to the ground at a Manhattan party after admitting she was Jewish. Another said that colleagues who once admired his work now called him a “Nazi” for speaking against Hamas. These stories are no longer isolated incidents. They’re part of a deeper crisis that exposes the reality of New York antisemitism in 2025.
The City That Promised Refuge Now Feels Hostile
After October 7, Jewish New Yorkers like cinematographer Leia Jospé and painter Isaac Peifer found themselves targeted by peers in the very communities they helped build. In creative circles—music, film, and art—supporting Israel became the one stance that could destroy a career overnight. “People I thought were friends posted paraglider emojis and said ‘by any means necessary,’” filmmaker Yasha Gruben recalled. “These were people I had real relationships with.”
For many, that betrayal was worse than any online mob. “You can log off Twitter,” Peifer said, “but then you walk outside and it’s in your face—stickers glorifying Hamas, pro-terror rallies in the park, people in keffiyehs everywhere.”
That reality deepened after Zohran Mamdani, a far-left New York politician who blamed Israel for October 7 even as the massacre unfolded, won his primary. For countless Jewish New Yorkers, it marked a political turning point. “To see that kind of hatred rewarded in elections—it broke something in me,” Gruben admitted.
Once the safest haven for Jewish life in the Diaspora, New York City now feels like the very Europe their grandparents fled. And New York antisemitism has seeped beyond politics into everyday life: workplaces, classrooms, subways, and even birthday parties.
A Modern Exodus in Real Time
Some have already fled. Gruben now lives in Europe with his Israeli wife. Peifer left for Albuquerque after losing his network in New York’s art world. Others, like Jospé, feel trapped—cut off from work, isolated from old friends, and unable to leave the city they once loved. “My grandparents built a life here,” she said. “Now I wear my Star of David and feel like a target.”
Yet not everyone is ready to surrender. One group member—who asked to be called Judith—refuses to abandon New York. “Leaving out of fear is short-sighted,” she said. “You can’t run from this. You have to stand your ground.”
That defiance speaks to the heart of the struggle: whether to leave a city that feels hostile, or fight for the soul of the place that once symbolized freedom. Because New York antisemitism isn’t only a Jewish problem—it’s a warning about what happens when intolerance takes root under the banner of progress.
A Historical Echo—and a Choice
In 1933, German Jewish writer Lion Feuchtwanger published The Oppermanns, about a well-integrated Jewish family watching their world collapse under Nazism. Each character tells themselves the persecution will pass. It didn’t.
Today, many Jewish New Yorkers are living a quieter version of that story. The social ostracism, the political hostility, the sense of being surrounded by neighbors who justify violence against them—all of it feels hauntingly familiar.
The question isn’t just whether New York has fallen. It’s whether Americans will recognize the warning signs in time—or look back decades from now and wonder how we missed them.
For now, the story remains unwritten. But one thing is clear: freedom, faith, and courage are being tested once again on the streets of New York.
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