Villains of Judea: Liora Rez’s Holy War Against Critics of Israel

Inside StopAntisemitism.org’s quest to make life miserable for those who dare criticize Israel.

Liora Rez, a professional Jewish agitator funded by shadowy donors, has built a lucrative career by branding critics of Israel as hate-filled bigots.

She emigrated to the United States as a Jewish refugee from what she describes as a thoroughly antisemitic environment in the Soviet Union. That early experience would become the foundation of her later activism against antisemitism.

But before Rez became one of the most controversial figures in pro-Israel activism, she had a very different public persona. Around 2012, she founded Jewish Chick Media Inc., a lifestyle brand focused on fashion and Jewish identity. As researcher Karl Radl documented, Rez pivoted from being a Jewish fashion and lifestyle influencer to a full-time pro-Israel activist following a 2016 trip to Israel with the Jewish Women’s Renaissance Project, now known as Momentum. At the time, she was navigating a contentious divorce in Connecticut, and the combination of circumstances prompted her decision to reinvent herself entirely.

In October 2018, Rez launched StopAntisemitism.org, an organization that would gain her great notoriety The group focuses on publicly calling out individuals it regards as antisemitic, using digital networks including the Internet, direct mail, and social media to reach millions. The organization’s stated mission is to publicly expose antisemitic behavior and ensure repercussions for those who, in their view, advocate hatred and violence against Jewish people.

Rez’s philosophy is blunt. She firmly believes that “antisemitism thrives when there are no consequences,” so her organization aims to create those consequences, which include job loss, suspensions, and public shaming for individuals they target. In testimony before Congress and numerous op-eds, Rez claims her group is “nonpartisan” and “grassroots,” mobilizing networks of activists to identify alleged antisemites and pressure institutions to discipline them.

The results, by Rez’s own account, have been dramatic. In an interview with the Jewish News Syndicate, she claimed that since the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023, StopAntisemitism has “profiled more than 1,000 antisemites” and “over 400 of them have been fired” thanks to their pressure campaigns.

Harassing Israel critics is no cheap endeavor. Rez’s organization enjoys substantial financial backing from the Jewish community. The Milstein Family Foundation, led by real estate investor Adam Milstein and his wife Gila, is a key funder of StopAntisemitism.org. Tax records from 2022 reveal that the Merona Leadership Foundation—with Gila Milstein serving as president—compensated Rez with a $125,633 salary while allocating approximately $270,000 toward the organization’s operational costs.

At the core of Rez’s activism lies the premise that anti-Zionism and antisemitism are essentially identical. In a Jerusalem Post profile, she stated unequivocally: “Anti-Zionism is a contemporary form of antisemitism. We must fight this hate’s influence, especially on younger generations, to secure the future of the Jewish people in the US, in Israel and around the world.”

In her writing, Rez frequently emphasizes that Jews comprise just over 2% of the US population but are victims of “almost 60% of all US religious hate crimes,” using this statistic to justify an expansive definition of antisemitism. StopAntisemitism employs the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism as its guide, which explicitly includes several anti-Israel positions—such as describing Israel as a racist endeavor—as examples of antisemitism. For Rez, hostility toward Israel functions as the primary vehicle for contemporary anti-Jewish hatred.

She views the “global wave of Jew hatred” that surfaced after Hamas’ October 7 attacks as justification for intensive monitoring of campuses, corporations, unions, hospitals, and government agencies. Rez identified college campuses as one of the most troubling environments, citing cases of Jewish students being singled out in libraries, professors openly celebrating Hamas and Hezbollah militants, demonstrators blocking building access, and university leadership remaining passive. “We stepped in,” she stated, adding a stern message: “If you target Jewish students, your actions won’t remain unseen.”

Her approach advocates aggressive public exposure of students and faculty, often tagging employers and prospective employers on social media to maximize professional consequences. Perhaps nothing illustrates StopAntisemitism’s controversial approach better than its annual “Antisemite of the Year” competition, where the organization nominates a slate of figures and invites the public to vote. The contest has featured a mix of figures from the right, Holocaust deniers, and high-profile pro-Palestinian or anti-Zionist public figures, reinforcing critics’ claims that Rez collapses political opposition to Israel into the category of antisemitism.

Conservative commentator Tucker Carlson was named the 2025 “Antisemite of the Year” on December 21, 2025, marking the second consecutive year that StopAntisemitism selected a right-wing figure–Candace Owens was the recipient of this distinction in 2024–for this designation after years of predominantly awarding the title to left-wing personalities. Carlson competed against a diverse slate of nominees including UFC fighter Bryce Mitchell, social media personality Stew Peters, beloved children’s YouTuber Rachel Anne Accurso (“Ms. Rachel”), and “Sex and the City” star Cynthia Nixon.

Although Ms. Rachel did not receive StopAntisemitism’s designation, in 2025, StopAntisemitism launched what became one of its most controversial campaigns against her. The Jewish advocacy organizations went on the offensive after she posted about children in the Gaza Strip, called for an end to the blockade, and hosted Palestinian journalist Motaz Azaiza.

“Since 10/7, Ms. Rachel has pushed Hamas propaganda to millions - sharing debunked images, inflated casualty claims, and almost entirely ignoring Israeli child victims,” StopAntisemitism published on X. “She also hosted Motaz Azaiza, a terrorist sympathizer who celebrated the 10/7 massacre & openly idolizes Yahya Sinwar.”

Accurso publicly rejected the label, emphasizing her commitment to children’s well-being. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) condemned the nomination, saying, “Ms. Rachel is a preschool teacher who speaks up for starving children in Gaza. That is not antisemitism. I hope thousands will join me in standing up for her.”

More recently, Rez has joined a right-wing Zionist campaign against newly-sworn New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani. She has warned that his election as NYC mayor would be “catastrophic” and portrayed him as part of a rabid anti-Israel left that would “take over every inch of NYC.”

Through her fanatic advocacy for Israel, Rez has gained substantial recognition within certain segments of the Jewish community. She testified before the U.S. House Small Business Committee in January 2024, where her official bio stressed her status as a Soviet Jewish refugee and described StopAntisemitism’s efforts to hold antisemites “accountable for their hateful actions.”

The Jewish newspaper Algemeiner has repeatedly listed her among the “Top 100 People Positively Influencing Jewish Life,” highlighting StopAntisemitism’s social media reach and their ability to deliver severe economic and social consequences against those who criticize the Jewish state.

The ultimate lesson of StopAntisemitism.org is that the movement’s true goal is not mutual respect, but total domination, enforcing a code of silence where gentile criticism is treated as a thought crime worthy of punishment.

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