<\/p>\n
In rural Vermont, a conflict unfolding thousands of miles away has left its mark on a local storefront, exposing tensions over Israel, Gaza and the increasingly difficult question of where political criticism ends and antisemitism begins.<\/p>\n
Security cameras outside Denise Gebroe’s gym in Proctorsville captured a man spray painting “Free Palestine” and profanity over Israeli flags displayed outside the business.<\/p>\n
“A lot of people were scared. Neighbors, right down the street that wanted the profanity taken down immediately,” Gebroe said. “Turned out to be a 25-year-old man that works in the next town over.”<\/p>\n
The vandalism came as debates over Israel, Gaza and Palestinian rights reached Vermont town halls. Several communities have recently passed Apartheid Free Communities resolutions criticizing Israeli policy and urging local institutions to reconsider their ties.<\/p>\n
Zoe Jannuzi of the American Friends Service Committee said the local efforts showed that the issue extends beyond major cities and college campuses.<\/p>\n
“It really showed the success of this campaign and the success of organizers in Vermont in proving that Palestine is a local issue,” Jannuzi said.<\/p>\n
Supporters say the resolutions criticize the policies and actions of the Israeli government rather than Jewish people. Some Jewish residents, however, say the campaigns have contributed to an atmosphere in which they feel demonized and unwelcome in their own communities.<\/p>\n
“They are demonizing us,” said Mark Treinkman of Vermont Friends of Israel.<\/p>\n
* VT Town Meetings Focus on Israel, Critics Warn of ‘Separating Jews from the Rest of the Population’<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n For some Jewish residents, the debate has moved beyond politics and become a question of personal safety.<\/p>\n “When you believe you are against someone who is a literal Nazi or kills children or wants genocide or ethnic cleansing or believes in apartheid, it gives you permission to take matters into your own hands,” Treinkman said.<\/p>\n The tension has raised a difficult question about where criticism of Israel or Zionism ends and antisemitism begins.<\/p>\n John Heermans, a supporter of the Apartheid Free Communities campaign, said criticism of Israel’s government should not automatically be characterized as hostility toward Jewish people. Many Jewish advocates say the line is crossed when Jewish people are targeted because they are Jewish or held personally responsible for the actions of the Israeli government.<\/p>\n Whether shouted during a crowded protest in Manhattan or spray-painted on a storefront in rural Vermont, antisemitic slurs can take different forms while leaving Jewish communities feeling threatened and intimidated.<\/p>\n The questions confronting Proctorsville are now echoing far beyond its Main Street.<\/p>\n In New York City, the argument has become a high-profile political fight surrounding Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his criticism of Israel’s war in Gaza.<\/p>\n “I’ve made it clear my commitment to protect Jewish New Yorkers is one I will uphold,” Mamdani said.<\/p>\n Protesters outside the mayor’s residence, however, said his rhetoric, including his description of the war in Gaza as genocide, has left many Jewish New Yorkers feeling vulnerable.<\/p>\n “It’s awful. Jews are being harassed, intimidated. The level of antisemitism is beyond anything I’d ever thought I’d see,” protester Adam Orlow said.<\/p>\n Even within the Jewish community, there is disagreement over whether criticism of Israel or its leaders should be considered antisemitic. Rabbi Dovid Feldman of Neturei Karta International defended Mamdani’s right to condemn Israeli policies.<\/p>\n “We know Mayor Mamdani, an honest righteous person, standing up for New Yorkers, and if he believes what Israel does is criminal and is wrong, then that is not antisemitism,” Feldman said.<\/p>\n Beyond the political rhetoric, federal authorities are investigating violent incidents allegedly targeting Jewish people and institutions.<\/p>\n The FBI has described a March attack on a Michigan synagogue as Hezbollah-inspired terrorism.\u00a0<\/p>\n In Boulder, Colorado, federal prosecutors charged a man with a hate crime following an attack on a gathering focused on the plight of Israeli hostages.<\/p>\n The Anti-Defamation League recorded more than 6,000 antisemitic incidents in its 2025 national audit, the third highest total in the organization’s history.<\/p>\n “There absolutely has been a tremendous escalation in anti-Semitic incidents since October 7th in all sectors of life, K-12 and campus, on the streets, in the workplace,” said Shira Goodman of the Anti-Defamation League.<\/p>\n Concerns about antisemitism are also playing out in schools.<\/p>\n In 2024, the School District of Philadelphia agreed to take corrective steps following a federal investigation into its response to allegations of antisemitic harassment. CAMERA, a pro-Israel media watchdog organization, said the district’s response did not go far enough.<\/p>\n “While the school district was supposedly working through resolution, and there were steps that they were supposed to take. There were still issues of antisemitic harassment,” said Rebecca Schgallis of CAMERA’s K-12 program.<\/p>\n In Colorado, Boulder Valley Schools has been accused of failing to protect a Jewish eighth grade student from repeated slurs, harassment and physical attacks.<\/p>\n James Pasch of the Anti-Defamation League said one alleged incident involved a Chromebook charging cord being wrapped around the student’s neck, pulling the student backward in a chair until the student fell, while the student was called an antisemitic slur.<\/p>\n The response to antisemitism has also reached Washington.<\/p>\n In May, senators introduced the bipartisan Jewish American Security Act. The proposed legislation would expand civil rights enforcement on college campuses, increase security funding for Jewish institutions and require greater transparency from social media companies.<\/p>\n Treinkman said the vandalism at Gebroe’s business illustrates why he believes stronger action is needed.<\/p>\n “We feel we are under attack. It’s not just antisemitism, it’s anti-Zionism. It’s a hate movement and the vandalism we see at Denise’s studio is proof of that,” he said.<\/p>\n Mark Meckler, president of Convention of States Action, said elected officials are not solely responsible for confronting hatred.<\/p>\n “The way that you stop this sort of stuff from spreading and stop it from getting worse is you actually stand up and say something about it,” Meckler said.<\/p>\n Back in Proctorsville, the man who said he defaced Gebroe’s studio apologized directly to her and later issued a public apology on social media.<\/p>\n “My name is Brent and I am here to apologize to the members of DG Bodyworks,” he said in a video. “I’m sorry for the damage I have done,, and I’ve taken steps to make it right.”<\/p>\n As part of that effort, Gebroe convinced him to become a volunteer firefighter alongside her, offering a small but personal measure of hope in a community divided by a distant conflict.<\/p>\n “As far as I’m concerned, he’s my brother. He’s going to learn how to save lives instead of hurt them,” Gebroe said.<\/p>\n Gebroe said she wants Americans to move beyond hatred and recognize their shared humanity.<\/p>\n “That this hate subsides and that we can all unify, we can all live together. We are one person. There’s no difference between any of us,” she said.<\/p>\n As antisemitism continues to test communities nationwide, the larger question is whether more Americans will choose dialogue and accountability over division.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In rural Vermont, a conflict unfolding thousands of miles away has left its mark on a local storefront, exposing tensions over Israel, Gaza and the increasingly difficult question of where political criticism ends and antisemitism begins. 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“What we’re doing is criticizing the policies and actions of the state of Israel. Not the Jews,” Heermans said.<\/p>\n