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Rafael Shimunov

@rafaelshimunov.bsky.social
12.9K followers 237 following 328 posts

Host of Beyond The Pale on WBAI 99.5 FM NYC, Board alum Jews for Racial & Economic Justice. Co-founder of the Jewish Vote. Art at Art V War. Queens is the Future. @rafternoon on IG, leaving my 100K on X.

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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Who addresses things at their root, rather than under pressure of those who want to use today to fan the flames of a burning genocide. Who calls out US facilitation of that genocide. It is the Muslim way. It is the Jewish way. It is the human way. 2/2
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
I love having a mayor who treats every life equally, and refuses to erase any Palestinian or Israeli person killed. Who makes sure he holds his role representing all New Yorkers. 🧵
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Really powerful volunteer opportunity to send your Jewish friends for election protection phone canvass. www.mobilize.us/bendthearc/e...
mobilize.us
Jews for Election Protection: Poll Worker/ Poll Monitor Recruitment Phonebank · Bend the Arc
Bend the Arc: A Jewish Partnership for Justice is committed to protecting our democracy and fighting back against attacks on our elections. As part of our Election Defense program in 2026, we'll be ca...
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Bend the Arc: Jewish Action @bendthearc.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Protecting free speech is essential to protecting our democracy, and our democracy keeps Jews — and all of us — safe. Deporting beloved community leaders does not. Our Jewish community stands with Salah Sarsour and all our immigrant neighbors targeted by this administration's cruelty.
nytimes.com
Judge Rules in Favor of Deporting Muslim Leader in Wisconsin
Salah Sarsour, a vocal supporter of Palestinian rights who leads the state’s largest Islamic group, says the case is politically motivated and plans to appeal the decision.
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Bend the Arc: Jewish Action @bendthearc.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Statement by Bend the Arc CEO Jamie Beran: "Earlier this year, in an effort to truly confront antisemitism, the American Psychological Association (APA) correctly updated its ‘Resolution on Antisemitism’ to remove suggestions that criticizing the state of Israel was inherently antisemitic." 🧵
Greenblatt: For more than a year, we and other Jewish organizations told the APA's leadership exactly what needed to change, and they failed to act. A federal advisory committee has now confirmed what Jewish psychologists have been saying all along: antisemitism within this organization is pervasive.

An accreditor cannot credibly set standards for an entire profession while failing to uphold them within its own walls. This suspension should be a turning point, not another headline the APA waits out.

ADL: We commend the 
@usedgov
's National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity for recommending the suspension of the APA's accrediting authority on grounds that include the agency’s failure to address a pervasive culture of antisemitism.

ADL has spent more than a year pressing the APA to confront this crisis and has documented a hostile climate for Jewish and Israeli psychologists within the APA.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
What does this mean? If enforced, it would mean the American Psychological Association could no longer accredit schools, helping deeply damage the field, students, research and the profession. As well as free speech in the US. All for the government of Israel
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Notice Jonathan Greenblatt's sneaky words here, implying it's Jewish Psychologists vs the APA. When it was Jewish Psychologists who helped lead removing criticism of Israel from their definition of antisemitism. Now this is the result of his lobbying of Trump to punish them.
Greenblatt: For more than a year, we and other Jewish organizations told the APA's leadership exactly what needed to change, and they failed to act. A federal advisory committee has now confirmed what Jewish psychologists have been saying all along: antisemitism within this organization is pervasive.

An accreditor cannot credibly set standards for an entire profession while failing to uphold them within its own walls. This suspension should be a turning point, not another headline the APA waits out.

ADL:
We commend the 
@usedgov
's National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity for recommending the suspension of the APA's accrediting authority on grounds that include the agency’s failure to address a pervasive culture of antisemitism.

ADL has spent more than a year pressing the APA to confront this crisis and has documented a hostile climate for Jewish and Israeli psychologists within the APA.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Sending love protection to anyone dating in the vicinity of these insufferable tech bros. www.wired.com/story/tech-b...
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Robert Kraft didn’t ban Macklemore chanting Free Palestine. Robert Kraft is trying to stop 70,000 people chanting Free Palestine with him. And they still will because Palestine is bigger than Macklemore.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Well, the good news is that Ed Sheeran just made all of us more Irish than he is 🇮🇪
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Bend the Arc: Jewish Action @bendthearc.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Trump is desperate. The only way his movement can win is to break the rules and target our elections. But we will fight harder than ever to protect them. Join Bend the Arc's Jews for Election Protection campaign: www.alhands2026.org 🪬
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
bsky.app/profile/rafa...
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
My message to @speakermenin.bsky.social on her tacit endorsement of anti Muslim hate in her NYC Council.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Correction, question was after stating Ariola said he was sending a message to Al-Qaeda of his support, as well.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Wow just now: @hellgateny.bsky.social asks NYC Council Speaker Menin if councilmember Paladino comments about @mayor.nyc.gov Zohran Mamdani being motivated by the same intentions as the 9/11 hijackers was Islamophobia. Menin, her boss, not only refused to answer, she called it “politics”.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
After all, throughout history, like clockwork, the liberals have always feared socialism more than fascism. Which is just an ideological way to say they fear the power of ordinary people more than they fear dictators.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
It’s not surprising that Republicans are calling Hasan Piker antisemitic for saying the same thing. But I am surprised I’m still surprised it’s the Democrat establishment helping them lie.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
At my jobs in Jewish organizations, at my synagogue, at my Jewish dinner tables, across Jewish op-eds, journals, blogs and podcasts we have spoken for years about how Israel’s behavior is fueling antisemitism.
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Mondoweiss @mondoweiss.net · 20/08/2026
An Israeli strike destroyed two major medicine warehouses in Deir al-Balah, the latest Israeli attack on Gaza's failing health system. Gaza’s Health Ministry says medicine shortages are now killing three cancer patients a day. mondoweiss.net/2026/08/sile...
mondoweiss.net
‘Silent extermination’: Israel bombs medicine stores in Gaza, worsening the Strip’s dire healthcare crisis
An Israeli strike destroyed two major medicine warehouses in Deir al-Balah, the latest Israeli attack on Gaza’s failing health system. Gaza’s Health Ministry says medicine shortages are now killing…
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
There are only two ways to instantly know if ethnic whites are part of your nyc block.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
US Judge: Israeli Flag = Jewish Race? Unhinged ruling from an infamous Trump appointed federal judge, Trevor McFadden. Same person who protected Jan 6 insurrectionists, Trump taxes, anti-vax, banning press. www.thejewishnews.com/news/israeli...
U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden rejected Ali's argument that the flag did not represent Jewish identity. "Sumrall supports Israel as an expression of her Jewish identity," he wrote in the ruling.

"The Star of David, emblazoned upon the Israeli flag, symbolizes the Jewish race," he wrote. "Battery, particularly involving a racial symbol, is strong evidence of racial discrimination."
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Tried to delete genocide. Had to delete her account instead.
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Abby Chava Stein @abbystein.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
Last night's attack at Central Synagogue is deeply heartbreaking, unjustifiable, and disturbing beyond words. For so many of us who attend Shabbos prayers weekly, it's a beautiful moment of rejuvenation, connecting with our tradition, and building community. An attack on Shabbat cuts deep 😭 1/5
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Bend the Arc: Jewish Action @bendthearc.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
The suspect reportedly held far right ideologies, including the dehumanization of Jews, Iranians, and the Mayor himself. A reminder that we must commit to combatting antisemitism alongside all forms of bigotry. Our collective safety depends on it. 4/4
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Bend the Arc: Jewish Action @bendthearc.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
Our hearts break for the Central Synagogue community in Manhattan after Friday night’s attack. Shabbat is the day we are commanded to pause and peacefully gather together in worship. The peace was shattered, but the worship boldly continued. 🧵
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Michael Hobbes @michaelhobbes.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Yet another op-ed in prestige media pretending racism, sexism and transphobia among Republicans is a response to Democratic overreach www.nytimes.com/2026/08/14/o...
Republicans Are About to Repeat the Democrats’ Biggest Mistake
Over the years, Republicans have portrayed Democrats as beholden to bespoke identities (they/them), obsessed with an alleged genocide (Gaza) and in thrall to anti-American revisionism (see the efforts to recenter our national narrative on slavery).

We are critics of diversity, equity and inclusion programs who largely agree with that characterization. We believe the Republicans’ war on woke has made America a fairer, safer place by checking some of the worst excesses of modern progressivism, from antiwhite discrimination in corporate America to biological men competing in women’s sports.

But we are also concerned that this backlash is morphing into something darker, dumber and ultimately self-defeating. Today the right has begun to resemble its depiction of the left: There are invented identities like heritage American, claims of white genocide in South Africa and arguments from right-wing influencers that the Allies weren’t the good guys in World War II.

What changed, in other words, were the facts on the ground. The Republican Party responded organically to a shift in public opinion, which was itself a response to a more assertive form of transgender activism — one whose definition of inclusion seemed to compromise basic notions of fairness. Once regarded as a political albatross, bathroom bills are now on the books in 21 states.

A similar dynamic drove the right’s dwindling tolerance for affirmative action and D.E.I.
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damniel spookradski @self.agency · 14/08/2026
did we live through the same decade?
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
"Federal neglect—and restrictive aid conditions—have broken the infrastructure meant to sustain human life in the Caribbean U.S. colony." From Coenia Sanchez for @inthesetimes.com inthesetimes.com/article/puer...
inthesetimes.com
Congress Has a Responsibility to Reverse the Water Crisis It Caused in Puerto Rico
Federal neglect—and restrictive aid conditions—have broken the infrastructure meant to sustain human life in the Caribbean U.S. colony.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
I don't know which lobby, Amazon or Israel, but someone is writing these Zohran talking points for them.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Let's remake the show Hoarders. This time, as an entire generation of boomers created and established into the American Dream™ by the democratic socialism of their parents' generation, while hoarding it away from their own kids' generation.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
So much of our lives are devoted to work that has to happen just because boomers didn't go to therapy. So much of lives taken, too
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Bright D Limm 임대중 @bdlimm.myatproto.social · 10/08/2026
PS: If the Delivery Protection Act—for which Z just announced his support today—passes, this will be (after the rent freezes) the 2nnd major policy achievement of his admin. @tiffanycaban.bsky.social 's bill is THE model for city + state governments to replicate nationwide. bsky.app/profile/rafa...
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Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani @mayor.nyc.gov · 10/08/2026
If it looks like an Amazon delivery and drives like an Amazon delivery, then it's an Amazon delivery, right? Not according to Amazon. Big companies like Amazon have built a vast network of subcontractors who deliver their packages while shielding them from accountability.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Thank you and @tiffanycaban.bsky.social for ruining Jeff Bezos’ day as he used this BS tactic to avoid responsibility for leading the industry in worker injuries and community pollution.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
Zuckerberg's $300M yacht "repeatedly" declined to help stranded Alaska boat calling for help. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
Zuckerberg faces questions over why superyacht reportedly declined to help stranded boat
Small cruise ship rescued skiff in south-east Alaska even though Meta billionaire’s $300m megayacht was closer
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Antonia Marrero @antoniamarrero.bsky.social · 06/06/2026
Support independent media. Support Pacifica’s anchor: @wbai.org Support freedom on the airwaves. HT @stucknation.bsky.social @democracynow.org @democracyatwork.bsky.social
myemail.constantcontact.com
✊ Independent media survives because listeners step up
Email from WBAI Radio Help WBAI continue bringing you the reporting and voices corporate media leaves behind.   Independent Media Needs Independent Support Over the last two years WBAI has paid the Du
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
We’ve been fighting for these Amazon delivery worker protections for years. Cheers to @tiffanycaban.bsky.social and @mayor.nyc.gov for ruining Jeff Bezos’ day today. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/10/n...
nytimes.com
A Fight Brews Between Mamdani and Amazon Over Delivery Workers
New York City’s mayor wants major companies to hire employees directly rather than relying on contractors. The firms say that will raise prices and slow service.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
From car bomb threats to white powder envelopes and a DOJ investigation based on fake hasbara Yelp reviews, how Congressman Dan Goldman vilified Poetica, an immigrant owned small biz he’s supposed to protect in a last ditch effort to save a losing race. indypendent.org/2026/08/targ...
indypendent.org
Targeted: An NYC Congressman accused Poetica Coffee of Antisemitism — Bigotry Came to Avenge Him.
Poetica Coffee owner refused to take Representative Dan Goldman's money. Zionists death threats have flooded his coffee shops.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
“A Shiite meat bomb” Just casual Islamophobia from Jay Leno. Conan and Letterman would never.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Listen on Spotify open.spotify.com/episode/3HkV...
open.spotify.com
Arab Jewish Music Reclaimed with Laura Elkeslassy
Beyond The Pale: Radio's Home For The Jewish Left · Episode
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Listen on Apple podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/b...
podcasts.apple.com
Arab Jewish Music Reclaimed with Laura Elkeslassy
Podcast Episode · Beyond The Pale: Radio's Home For The Jewish Left · July 31 · 50m
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Reclaiming Arab Jewish identity through music with Laura Elkeslassy.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
This is not what Jews are demanding. It is what a minority of Jews who are coordinated with right wing Christian fascists, right wing media and the 1% are demanding. These are the death throws of irrelevant legacy Jewish organizations who bet on American support for genocide and lost. 3/3
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
This says to New Yorkers: our support for a war criminal is more important than your need to afford to eat, be healthy and safe. Fueling antisemitism by embodying antisemitic tropes of supremacy and selfishness. 2
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
A minority of Jews pretending to speak for all of us when they call on the most hated American in the world (Trump) to defend the most hated man in the world (Netanyahu) and go after one of the most liked (Mamdani). 🧵
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Here in Queens, we're mourning the loss of this young neighbor, Angel Sarah Rampersad, sent to Iran to die for Trump and Netanyahu's political games, power, land and cash grabs. I am disgusted. www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news...
cbsnews.com
U.S. soldier from Queens killed during Iran airstrike in Jordan, Pentagon says
Sgt. Angel Rampersad was a 28-year-old from Ozone Park who died in an Iranian attack on an air base.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Israel's torture and starvation machine is so bad, that even the Wall Street Journal has to investigate it. www.wsj.com/world/middle...
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Now that the race is over @repdangoldman.bsky.social has moved on from Poetica, while its immigrant owner deals w an arrest of a person who threatened him with a car bomb, envelopes with white powder, and a Trump DOJ investigation. Poetica banned him from stores. And voters fired him from Congress.
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Rafael Shimunov @rafaelshimunov.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Poetica Coffee responds. When Congressman Goldman knew he was losing, he decided to spend the final days of his race against @bradlander.bsky.social pretending a constituent was antisemitic for opposing his material support of Israeli genocide of Palestinians. www.usatoday.com/story/news/2...
usatoday.com
How a Brooklyn coffee shop got caught in a political firestorm
Poetica Coffee made a post criticizing Congressman Dan Goldman right before his NY primary race. What followed were protests and death threats.
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