Hasan Piker Faces Intense Criticism Over Controversial Remarks About Jewish Americans and Israel

Topline

Several Democratic figures denounced left-wing streamer Hasan Piker this week following his controversial remarks suggesting that portraying Jewish people as singularly invested in Israel is a “very dangerous” narrative for the community.

Key Facts

During an Aug. 20 Twitch livestream, Piker stated that “the idea that Jews are monolithic… is a very dangerous mode of propaganda.” He argued that “people don’t f— with Israel any longer, and if Jews in America continue to propagate the notion that they are singularly invested in Israel, eventually someone will take action—not against the state of Israel, but against American Jews.”

Piker delivered these remarks while displaying an X post from the account “AIPAC Tracker,” an account that monitors donations from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. The post featured Michigan state Sen. Jeremy Moss, the Democratic nominee in the state’s 11th Congressional District and a Jewish voter.

The AIPAC Tracker post implied that Moss had not endorsed Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed due to the candidate’s backing by pro-Israel groups. El-Sayed opposes U.S. military support for Israel and has criticized his opponents for accepting AIPAC donations.

Piker subsequently criticized Moss after Moss told Slate that El-Sayed would need to demonstrate “some serious outreach to Oakland County’s Jewish community” to win the Senate race. Piker accused Moss of perpetuating a “media narrative” that “presents Jews as singularly minded and singularly invested in the continuation of the Israeli apartheid.”

El-Sayed, who had campaigned alongside Piker prior to his primary, released a statement on Monday following intense backlash over the streamer’s comments. El-Sayed stated, “antisemitism is a scourge, and we need to address it in all its forms. And I stand against any rhetoric that puts the community at risk,” clarifying, “I want to be crystal clear, nobody speaks for this campaign besides me and my campaign spokespeople.”

He told Semafor on Wednesday that he has “no plans” to campaign with Piker again.

What have other Democrats said about Piker’s comments?

Moss stated he will “not be lectured by a California podcaster about what Oakland County, Michigan’s Jewish community should and shouldn’t believe,” adding, “we certainly won’t be gaslit into believing we’re responsible for the antisemitic harm upon us.” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., condemned the remarks in a statement, asserting that “the malicious claim that American Jews are inviting violence against themselves is dangerous and antisemitic.” When asked by CNN later that day if his comments referred to Piker, Jeffries confirmed they did, describing them as “dangerous, malicious and antisemitic and should not be tolerated by anyone in the public square.” Jewish Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that he “unreservedly rejects reckless and dangerous rhetoric suggesting that policy advocacy invites violence against the Jewish community or any community,” emphasizing that “American Jews and all Americans must have the freedom and security to speak out and petition their government without fear of reprisal.” Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., campaigning for El-Sayed on Wednesday, declared, “I am done. So don’t any reporter ask me again about Hasan Piker. It’s not what November is about. I don’t agree with Hasan Piker on a lot of stuff.” Dingell also told CNN, “I think it’s incumbent upon Abdul to make it very clear to people that he doesn’t agree with things that Hasan Piker says. I pray that we’re not gonna see him in Michigan from now until the election.” Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., wrote on X, “Hasan Piker’s dangerous and hateful language targeting Jewish Americans has no place in our civic discourse. Suggesting that Jewish Americans bear responsibility for hatred or violence directed against them is wrong, dangerous, and antisemitic.” Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., stated, “This shouldn’t be hard: no community should face the threat of violence for their political views. Period… no one should casually be suggesting that anyone, Jews or otherwise, are to blame for being targeted.” Jewish Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Calif., accused Piker of “trying to encourage and justify violence against American Jews. And he’s saying that if violence does occur, it’s the fault of those in the Jewish community who publicly support Israel. We faced tougher threats than those of Mr. Piker, who’s literally a piker. We will not be silenced.”

How has Piker responded to the backlash?

In an email to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Piker wrote, “I see antisemitism as unjustly rising as Israel’s popularity rightfully plummets due to its genocide,” referencing a similar statement made by Jewish New York Times columnist Ezra Klein in an April column about him. Piker told the JTA, “calling all criticisms of Israel antisemitic only feeds into this dangerous false notion that Judaism and Zionism are inseparable and that all Jews are singularly invested in Israel.” Regarding El-Sayed’s response, Piker said, “I don’t think Abdul should cave to the Republican attack ads and framing, but if this allows him to stay on message then, he’s going to do what he must.” Commenting on Ossoff’s response in an X post on Thursday, Piker wrote, “i think jon ossoff’s best strengths came from his lack of interest in attacking his left flank & focusing on trump’s corruption & scandals instead. i said he was a dark horse because he’s been smart enough to back restrictions on weapons transfers to israel at times regardless of his incredibly conservative voting track record otherwise.” He continued, “the last 48 hr media frenzy is exactly why people don’t trust institutions from corporate media to our bought & sold political class. most of these orgs, and plenty in the media will operate like lapdogs for aipac with no care or consideration for nuance, the truth or how the majority feels about anything.”

Who is Hasan Piker?

Piker is a full-time Twitch streamer with more than 50,000 subscribers and a significant following among young men. He has faced criticism for his incendiary rhetoric, including making controversial statements about Israel, such as asserting that Israel is worse than Hamas and that America deserved the 9/11 attacks—the latter of which he regrets and says he should have explained more clearly. As Klein pointed out in his April column, Piker has also condemned antisemitism and attempts to distinguish between antisemitism and anti-Zionism. He has campaigned with multiple progressive candidates who have won their primaries, including El-Sayed, Darializa Avila Chevalier in New York, Melat Kiros in Colorado, and Donavan McKinney in Michigan. Prior to his latest controversy, Piker was a prominent target for conservatives seeking to link him to progressive primary candidates, while some moderate Democrats have also urged the party to distance itself from him.

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