(JEWISH GROUP) Antisemitic conspiracy theories about Jeffrey Epstein are proliferating -- and entering the mainstream

Watchdogs point to the Epstein discourse as a textbook example of ‘horseshoe theory’: where the far ends of the political spectrum come together

ason Epstein travels internationally as a public affairs consultant, and although he is a proud Jew, he does not announce it in countries where that might be an issue.

Until now it hasn’t been a problem, he says: Last names immediately recognizable as Jewish in the West are not identified as such in much of the rest of the world.

Lately, though, his Jewishness is coming up, he says, and he suspects it’s because antisemitic conspiracy theories have resurged alongside renewed attention to Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender at the center of one the United States’ strangest and most divisive political issues.

“You do have to wonder whether your last name might be the same as wearing a kippah,” he said.

Just as kippah-wearing Jews have experienced attacks from both right-wing and left-wing antisemites, so too are extremists on both the left and the right spreading antisemitic conspiracy theories about Epstein, a spokesperson for the Anti-Defamation League told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, who noted that Epstein’s crimes and alleged crimes had nothing to do with his Jewish identity.

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