Join us for a dynamic panel discussion examining the current state of antisemitism in the United States. Expert panelists will discuss the debate over antisemitism within Jewish communities, the implications of these divisions, and where we go from here.
Panelists include Matthew E. Berger, President and CEO of Mashber Strategies. Arie Dubnov, Chair of Israel Studies at George Washington University, and Emily Tamkin, journalist and author of Bad Jews. Moderated by Arno Rosenfeld, reporter for The Forward.
About the Speakers
Matthew E. Berger is a leader in developing effective strategies to fight antisemitism and anti-Israel bias. He is currently President and CEO of Mashber Strategies. As Executive Director of the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism, Matthew led the development and launch of the Cannes Lion Award-winning “Stand Up to Jewish Hate” campaign. Before joining FCAS, Matthew was Hillel International’s Vice President for External Affairs and Campus Preparedness, overseeing programs that addressed antisemitism, anti-Israel activity and security concerns on college campuses around the world. Berger has more than two decades of experience as a journalist and communications professional, with a focus on politics, Middle East policy and the American Jewish community. He previously served as senior director of communications for a Middle East policy think tank. He lives in Washington, D.C.
Arie M. Dubnov is the Max Ticktin Chair of Israel Studies. Trained in Israel and the U.S., he is a historian of twentieth century Jewish and Israeli history, with emphasis on the history of political thought, the study of nationalism, decolonization and partition politics, and with a subsidiary interest in the history of Israeli popular culture. Prior to his arrival at GW, Dubnov taught at Stanford University and the University of Haifa. He was a G.L. Mosse Fellow at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a participant in the National History Center’s International Decolonization Seminar, and recipient of the Dorset Fellowship at the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies and a was Visiting Scholar at Wolfson College, Oxford.
Arno Rosenfeld is an enterprise reporter at the Forward where he covers antisemitism, including how different segments of the Jewish community are seeking to address the problem. He has reported from the Charlottesville courtroom where white supremacists were on trial for organizing a deadly rally and the Texas suburb where a rabbi and his congregants were held hostage. His coverage of George Washington University, which has alternately been described as a haven for Jewish students and a hotbed of antisemitism, won the Boris Smolar Award for Excellence in Investigative Reporting from the American Jewish Press Association in 2023.
Arno previously covered state politics for the Casper Star-Tribune, Wyoming’s statewide newspaper and got his start in Jewish journalism at j. The Jewish News of Northern California, and has written for JTA, The Times of Israel and other publications. He lives in Washington, D.C.
Emily Tamkin is a journalist and the author of The Influence of Soros: Politics, Power, and the Struggle for an Open Society and Bad Jews: A History of American Jewish Politics and Identity. She is a contributing columnist at the Forward and writes regularly for the New Republic, Slate, and the Washington Post, among other publications. Previously, she covered US foreign policy, politics, and society on staff at Foreign Policy, BuzzFeed News, and the New Statesman. She was a part of Shalom Hartman's inaugural writers and journalists fellowship. She lives in Washington, DC.
Color photograph from the "No Fear" Rally on the National Mall. The rally meant to bring attention to rising antisemitism in the U.S. on July 11, 2021. Photographer: Lloyd Wolf. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Lloyd Wolf Collection. Gift of Lloyd Wolf.