From Campus Violence to City Hall Victory
The Dr. Phil Podcast
Dr. Phil McGraw
4.3 • 13.5K Ratings
🗓️ 2 April 2026
⏱️ 46 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In the wake of a violent antisemitic attack on campus, DePaul student Michael Kaminsky and University of Chicago student Jake Rymer refused to stay silent. What began as fear and frustration over rising campus hostility after October 7 became a grassroots legislative movement. With no political power or institutional backing, the two students organized, educated, and lobbied city leaders -culminating in a unanimous 50–0 City Council vote making Chicago the largest American city to codify the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism into municipal law. As New York City rescinds its adoption of the same definition, this episode examines courage, institutional failure, bipartisan action, and what happens when the youngest voices in the room redraw the moral line against hate.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Okay everybody, we're talking about something that should concern every parent, every student, |
| 0:12.0 | and every American who believes in basic human dignity. And believe me, somehow or another, |
| 0:20.0 | that seems to have lost focus. |
| 0:23.2 | Across the country, we have seen a disturbing surge in anti-Semitism, |
| 0:29.0 | especially on college campuses, and particularly since October 7th. |
| 0:34.7 | Now, for many students, what was once political debate has turned into |
| 0:40.8 | intimidation, violence, and fear. But this story isn't just about hate. It's about the flip |
| 0:50.0 | side. It's about courage. Because you're about to meet two college students, Michael Kaminsky and |
| 0:55.0 | Jake Grimer, who refused to be intimidated, refused to stay silent. |
| 1:03.0 | One was the subject of a brutal campus attack. The other watched anti-Semitism just explode all around him. |
| 1:10.0 | But instead of backing down, they took action. |
| 1:12.6 | What happened next is something no one expected. |
| 1:15.6 | These two students helped push Chicago, |
| 1:18.6 | one of the largest cities in America, |
| 1:21.6 | to unanimously adopt the internationally recognized definition |
| 1:26.6 | of anti-Semitism into law. |
| 1:29.3 | Now this isn't about politics, this is about safety, accountability, and drawing a clear moral line. |
| 1:36.3 | And it all started with two young men who decided, look, enough's enough and too much is too much. |
| 1:42.3 | So gentlemen, thank you for being here. |
| 1:45.3 | I really appreciate it. |
| 1:46.7 | Did you ever expect you were going to get to the place that you are, particularly in |
| 1:54.1 | Chicago and in this kind of record time with a 50-0 vote at the city council level. |
... |
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