‘Was This an Accident Too?’ Ms. Rachel Amplifies Antisemitic Conspiracy Theory Hours After Tearful Apology

The sincerity of children’s YouTube star Ms. Rachel’s tearful apology for liking an antisemitic comment is under scrutiny after the influencer slash anti-Israel activist endorsed a pro-Hamas outlet’s suggestion that Jews themselves planted the comment. Ms. Rachel, whose real name is Rachel Accurso, has since stated that she “misunderstood” what the outlet was saying, adding that she “had no idea the account was antisemitic.” The 43-year-old children’s educator was thrust into the spotlight this week after screenshots circulated online showing that she liked a comment under one of her Instagram posts that read “’Free America from the Jews.” Ms. Accurso addressed the incident in a video statement shared with her 4.8 million Instagram followers on Wednesday, insisting she meant to delete the comment but accidentally liked it instead. “I’m a human who makes mistakes,” she said, visibly emotional. “I would never agree with an antisemitic thing like the comment. We have Jewish family, a lot of my friends are Jewish. I delete antisemitic comments.”At several points in the video, Ms. Accurso appeared frustrated with the fallout from her blunder. “I feel like we can’t be human anymore online,” she said, adding, “I want to say that it’s OK to be human and it’s OK to make mistakes.”She included a screenshot of a direct message conversation with a follower who had alerted her to the liked comment. “Ya I believe I deleted that earlier right when I saw it! I hate antisemitism,” Ms. Accurso had responded.Yet the integrity of her apology was thrown into doubt when she engaged with a comment left under the video from the Palestine News Network, a news syndicate that is outwardly pro-Hamas and whose members have been accused of tracking down and harassing Jews in public spaces.The account suggested a conspiracy theory that Jews had left the antisemitic comment themselves. “Spoiler alert: They left the comment themselves,” it wrote. Ms. Accurso replied: “oooooooooohhh.” She then pinned the comment to the top of her post, making it more visible to viewers.“Was this an accident too?” asked an incredulous Jewish influencer, Gabi Sara, on Instagram. “Pinning a comment from a massive disinformation media network implying a Jew left an antisemitic comment to paint Rachel in a negative light?” The chief executive officer of a media watchdog group, Honest Reporting, raised similar concerns. “Ms. Rachel didn’t just engage with antisemitic rhetoric — she later responded positively to a comment suggesting Jews planted the hate themselves, which is a classic antisemitic trope,” Jacki Alexander said in a statement to the Sun. “Taken together, it reflects a troubling, consistent willingness to amplify extreme narratives and assume the worst about Jews, with virtually no accountability or vetting,” she added. Others saw the incident as indicative of the audience Ms. Accurso has cultivated. Israeli educator and influencer Debbie Lechtman argued that through her frequent posts about Israel and the Middle East, Ms. Accurso has “fostered a virulently antisemitic following.” That reality “says much much more” than her accidental liking of a “Nazi comment,” Ms. Lechtman wrote on Instagram.Palestine News Network’s comment was only taken down hours later, on Thursday afternoon. Ms. Accurso explained in a second statement that she “misunderstood” the comment and had “no idea” the account was “antisemitic.” She added that she will be “shutting off comments for posts that are about this” and “I’m so exhausted.” Ms. Accurso has emerged as one of social media’s most recognizable children’s educators, boasting 18.2 million subscribers to her YouTube channel where she posts videos covering topics from potty training to reading skills. She has also established herself as an outspoken critic of Israel and its war in Gaza, leveraging her platform as a children’s advocate to accuse Israel of inflicting unjustifiable suffering on Palestinian children. Her political commentary — focused almost exclusively on attacks against Israel — has alarmed Jewish advocacy groups, which argue she effectively serves as a Hamas propaganda conduit to millions of social media followers.Critics have accused her of amplifying Hamas’s inflated casualty figures, repeating claims that Israel indiscriminately bombs children, and dismissing allegations of bias by insisting that “wanting kids to live isn’t antisemitic.” She drew further backlash after she platformed a Palestinian photojournalist who had celebrated Hamas’s October 7 massacre.Ms. Accurso’s progressive credentials were bolstered in recent months when New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani tapped her to join his inaugural committee. She has also appeared alongside Mr. Mamdani in videos promoting free childcare initiatives. The mayor’s office has not responded to the Sun’s request for comment.

‘Was This an Accident Too?’ Ms. Rachel Amplifies Antisemitic Conspiracy Theory Hours After Tearful Apology

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