{"id":358677,"date":"2026-09-28T11:14:12","date_gmt":"2026-09-28T11:14:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/358677\/"},"modified":"2026-09-28T11:14:12","modified_gmt":"2026-09-28T11:14:12","slug":"new-york-public-library-hosted-author-who-compared-israel-to-a-dog-shelter-called-zionists-intellectual-thugs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/358677\/","title":{"rendered":"New York Public Library hosted author who compared Israel to a ‘dog shelter,’ called Zionists ‘intellectual thugs’"},"content":{"rendered":"

The New York Public Library hosted an event<\/a> for an Israel-bashing Jewish author who likened the Jewish state to a \u201cdog shelter,\u201d according to a recording of the event.<\/p>\n

Benjamin Moser got a platform to plug his book, \u201cAnti-Zionism, a Jewish History<\/a>,\u201d at the library\u2019s main branch on 42nd Street on Sept. 22, claiming American Jews with no deep connections to Israel treat the country like a \u201cdog shelter\u201d that needs support.<\/p>\n

\u201cIsrael was like a dog shelter \u2026 Isn\u2019t it nice there\u2019s a dog shelter?\u201d Moser said at the event, held in the NYPL\u2019s Stephen A. Schwarzman Building.<\/p>\n

The New York Public Library is facing backlash for hosting author Benjamin Moser, who compared Israel to a \u201cdog shelter\u201d at a Sept. 22 event. New York Public Library<\/p>\n

There was no serious counterpoint to his controversial anti-Zionist views at the event.<\/p>\n

The person Moser chose to question him about his book was retired Columbia University history professor Rashid Khalidi<\/a>, also an anti-Zionist, who asked him friendly softball questions and expressed agreement with much of what he said.<\/p>\n

The author, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his biography of writer Susan Sontag, accused Israel supporters of whipping up hysteria with claims that America is not safe for Jews.<\/p>\n

Moser called it a \u201c\u2018poor me\u2019 thing\u201d where Jews are walking \u201cdown Madison Avenue\u201d and complaining that \u201c\u2018I couldn\u2019t get a croissant and it\u2019s like [Polish Nazi concentration camp] Treblinka,’\u201d Moser said. \u201cThis is really stuff you see on social media every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both the author and interviewer called Zionists \u201cintellectual thugs\u201d who want to silence dissent about the Israeli government and its \u201cgenocide\u201d in Gaza.<\/p>\n

He claimed history will not treat pro-Israeli American Jewish organizations kindly.<\/p>\n

Moser states that \u201cthe leadership of almost all of the main Jewish institutions\u201d in America \u201chave supported this genocide\u201d in Gaza and said \u201cnothing has made Jews look worse in history\u2026than Zionism.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moser promoted his book, \u201cAnti-Zionism, a Jewish History,\u201d while boosting his controversial anti-Zionist views.<\/p>\n

He said Israel was created when Zionists ethnically cleansed the native Palestinian and then instituted apartheid.<\/p>\n

The author also called the spiritual founder of Zionism, Theodor Herzl, \u201cweird.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pair glossed over Hamas\u2019 Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attacks<\/a> against Israel and focused on the Jewish state\u2019s retaliatory response in Gaza.<\/p>\n

One pro-Israel activist slammed the library \u2014 which received public subsidies \u2014 for giving Moser a forum.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have a right to free speech. But don\u2019t use our taxpayer dollars to give this Jew hater a platform,\u201d said former Brooklyn Assemblyman Dov Hikind, founder of the group Americans Against Antisemitism.<\/p>\n

Retired Columbia University history professor Rashid Khalidi, also an anti-Zionist, and Moser glossed over Hamas\u2019 Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks against Israel and focused on the Jewish state\u2019s retaliatory response in Gaza. New York Public Library<\/p>\n

City Council Speaker Julie Menin\u2019s office said it fielded complaints and is in contact with the Library to learn more about the event.<\/p>\n

NYPL defended the Moser event.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Library abides by an overarching principle to host speakers, programs, and public discussions that offer a diversity of viewpoints and cultural perspectives,\u201d NYPL spokesperson Melissa Grace said. \u201cWe host over 100,000 events a year.<\/p>\n

\u201cProgramming is never an institutional endorsement, but rather an opportunity to let people come to their own conclusions, debate, or even change their minds,\u201d Grace added. \u201cWe do not police speech, which is consistent with our commitment to intellectual freedom and the protections of the First Amendment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brent Reidy, director of research libraries at the NYPL, opened the event by saying that many at the library and beyond have \u201cstrong and differing feelings on Zionism, antii-Zionism and rising antisemitism and Islamophobia.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moser has claimed that most Jewish institutions across the US \u201chave supported this genocide\u201d when referring to the ongoing Israel-Hamas War. AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cWe hold complex and often difficult conversations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The Moser book forum was one of them.<\/p>\n

Moser was a fellow at the NYPL Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers at NYPL last year.<\/p>\n

The library is not partisan and not one-sided.<\/p>\n

It annually celebrates Jewish American Heritage Month, including with curated book lists to help patrons find books that capture the richness of Jewish experience and history.<\/p>\n

NYPL has held prior events with pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian activists.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, NYPL an event with that focused on the life of Holocaust survivor Gary \u201cPips\u201d Phillips.<\/p>\n

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In May, the lIbrary hosted an event with two lifelong peace activists and guides to Israel\/Palestine, both of whom lost family in the Israel\/Palestine conflict.<\/p>\n

Last year, the NYPL hosted Democrat Sen. Chuck Schumer for a discussion with Franklin Foer about the politician\u2019s book, \u201cAntisemitism in America: A Warning<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2020, it hosted David Remnick in conversation with Natan Sharansky, a political prisoner, Israeli politician and human rights activist.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The New York Public Library hosted an event for an Israel-bashing Jewish author who likened the Jewish state…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":358678,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[3862,68,893,60,61,57,9,24621,56,63,65,64,58,9498],"class_list":["post-358677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york-city","tag-antisemitism","tag-exclusive","tag-genocide","tag-israel","tag-israel-hamas-war","tag-metro","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-public-library","tag-ny","tag-nyc","tag-nyc-headlines","tag-nyc-news","tag-us-news","tag-zionism"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/358677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=358677"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/358677\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/358678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=358677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=358677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=358677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}