Author, Activist and Genesis BH Club Member Jeff Meshel on Tracking Antisemitic Threats in the US
The number of threats centered on antisemitism and shared on social media have grown 20 times since the terrorist attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023, according to information shared by The Clarion Project, a non-profit that scours social media for threats.
Jeff Meshel, a Member of Genesis Business Humanity Club, sits on the Board of this very effective organization which works with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies to identify impending dangers and share the data they collect using a platform developed and continually evolved by their tech team, which came from the National Security Administration (NSA).
Jeff Meshel, Author, Speaker, Investor, and Board Member, The Clarion Project
“Given the clear and present danger of continued hate speech and violence against Jews in the US and around the world, the work of The Clarion Project is more critical than ever,” Meshel said. The head of their tech team was credited with destroying the al-Qaeda media machine and driving the pursuit of Osama Bin Laden, enabling the US military to take out one of the world’s most notorious and dangerous terrorists.
Via the Clarion Intelligence Network (CIN), the primary mission center of Clarion Project, focuses on US-based violent extremists that present a danger to the public regardless of their ideological affiliation and the targets of their violence.
CIN utilizes state-of-the-art Open-source intelligence (OSINT) technology to rapidly identify threats; individuals that show the capability and intent to harm others.
CIN creates OSINT evidence packages that document these threats in detail and then provides these packages to law enforcement agencies through their standard tip intake process. Federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies simultaneously receive packages from CIN when the location of the threat is known.
“There are dangerous groups coalescing and the threats are very real, domestically exasperated by our porous borders,” Meshel explained. “The Clarion Project is aligned with the FBI and when there is impending danger they are notified. In fact, over the last two years The Clarion Project discovered 169 threats for school shootings, most recently preventing what could have been a deadly attack in Texas. They are now sensing dramatically growing antisemitic activities and continuing to enhance the efforts of the FBI and local authorities through real time intelligence that could have prevented attacks on synagogues over the last few years, for example.”
Pro-Palestinian protests at UC Berkley
According to recent posts, in March, UC Berkeley launched a hate crime investigation after a protest against an Israeli speaker, with two Jewish students facing antisemitism and physical battery. A criminal suspect was identified for trespassing, alongside a separate discrimination investigation by the university’s Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination. The protest, involving around 200 demonstrators, led to the event’s cancellation after unauthorized entry, prioritizing speaker, and audience safety.
“With protests on major campuses continuing to grow out of control,” Meshel said, “and with evidence that outside agitators are taking advantage of the war in Gaza and disinformation about the dynamics in Palestine, they are driving dangerous activities to grab the attention of the media. Not only must we protect our Jewish communities, but we must also protect all Americans by standing up for our very principles, with a clear distinction between hate speech and free speech.”
Richard Green, CEO of The Clarion Project
Richard Green, CEO of The Clarion Project, was interviewed on The Parsha Podcast, has devoted his life to Jewish Community outreach, and combines that with his passion for protecting people’s lives.
Another prominent non-profit, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), wrote in their 2023 Annual Report that anti-Semitic incidents had been increasing before the war erupted in October, and that the conflict had fueled “a fire that was already out of control.”
Jointly written with Tel Aviv University, the report said anti-Semitic incidents in 2023 were far above 2022 figures in most countries with large Jewish minorities, including the United States, France, Britain, Australia, Italy, Brazil and Mexico.
The publication of the report coincides with Holocaust Remembrance Day in Israel.
Jonathan Greenblatt, Director, Anti-Defamantion League
“The aftermath of Hamas’s horrific attack on Israel on October 7th was followed by a tsunami of hate against Jewish communities worldwide,” Jonathan Greenblatt, head of the New York-based ADL, said.
“This year’s report is incredibly alarming, with documented unprecedented levels of anti-Semitism, including in the US, where 2023 saw the highest number of anti-Semitic incidents in the US ever recorded by ADL.”
The ADL’s data recorded 7,523 incidents of anti-Semitism in the United States in 2023 compared with 3,697 incidents in 2022.
These acts included harassment, vandalism, and assault, targeting Jewish-owned businesses, Jewish institutions and organizations and Jewish students.
Under a broader methodology that includes anti-Zionist rhetoric, activism and calls for “resistance,” the ADL found a total of 8,873 incidents in the United States in 2023 — 5,204 between just October 7 and the end of the year.
Professor Uriya Shavit of Tel Aviv University
Professor Uriya Shavit of Tel Aviv University wrote in the report that “if current trends continue, the curtain will descend on the ability to lead Jewish lives in the West — to wear a Star of David, attend synagogues and community centers, send kids to Jewish schools, frequent a Jewish club on campus, or speak Hebrew.”
“Organizations like The Clarion Project and ADL and others deserve the full support of all people who care about religious and other freedoms,” Meshel said.
“We must be vigilant and active, and with their extraordinary intelligence – their software platform – their experienced and committed team, under David Green’s leadership, The Clarion Project will continue to make a meaningful difference.”