By: Joshua Rosenberg, January 30th, 2026
The so-called North American Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism, hosted by Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) received heavy police protection as the group, led by then-Mayor LaToya Cantrell, conducted a second line through parts of the city that terminated at Gallier Hall. Afterwards, officers on motorcycles and on horseback, among others held guard. Eric Adams, then-Mayor of New York City, was also in attendance. On the same night, the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD), which is understaffed — and as of 2024 — has only 800-900 officers on duty, responded to a double homicide in New Orleans East. The number of officers that the NOPD needs to optimally operate may vary, but the figure often cited is 1,600.
CAM has been accused by its critics of blurring the line between legitimate criticism of Israel and Israeli policy and antisemitism.
In a recent post, the group wrote, “The cultural appropriation of Jewish symbols and Jewish trauma is a deadly part of a broader campaign to use Jewish icons to advance an agenda that denies Jewish peoplehood,” the group wrote on their website. The Star of David is a central component of Israel’s official flag.
The group’s agenda from December included the following:
“Topics will include law enforcement collaboration, radicalization prevention, digital media, education initiatives, and tools for measuring local progress using CAM’s Municipal Antisemitism Action Index.”
The group’s critics, though, were out in force. Protesters met the second line as it approached Gallier Hall and were staged outside the building throughout the evening.
“Palestinian Youth Movement New Orleans (PYM Nola) condemns the city’s decision to host a conference by CAM–an organization whose sole goal is to silence critics of Israel by labeling any and all criticism as ‘antisemitic,’” Hakm Murad from PYM Nola told The Rosenberg Brief. “In a city with roughly 20,000 Palestinian community members, the decision to endorse such an extreme group spoke volumes. We are still mourning our beloved Tawfic Abdel-Jabbar, a Palestinian New Orleans born-and-raised teen who was murdered by Israeli settlers two years ago. The city has remained silent in the face of zero criminal investigations being brought to seek justice for one of its own. Instead, Latoya Cantrell rolled out the red carpet for CAM, an organization designed to suppress us, surveil us, and frame our grief as incitement and our resistance as terrorism. This is not fighting antisemitism. This is anti-Palestinian racism dressed in the language of Zionism. And it is morally bankrupt.”
CAM hosted some 200 mayors from around the country on Tuesday, December 2. There were 84 officers assigned to protect CAM’s second line. An unspecified number continued to guard Gallier Hall after the second line concluded.
The city is also facing a budgetary crisis to the tune of at least $160 million. There are currently talks of furloughs for City Council employees.
The protestors, which included New Orleans Stop Helping Israel’s Ports (NOSHIP), Jewish Voice for Peace, and Palestinian Youth Movement, were protesting the fact that mayors from across the country were receiving “training” on how to combat antisemitism, which to their view, often means silencing pro-Palestine voices and activism.
“As entirely peaceful protesters, NOSHIP members were met at Gallier Hall with a sea of blue; streets were blocked off, police were stationed at every corner, bomb sniffing dogs were run through the area, and a half dozen NOPD were stationed on horseback – all for a mere fifteen or so pro-Palestine demonstrators across the street,” a spokesperson for NOSHIP told The Rosenberg Brief.
“We were met by overwhelming force, and it was only made worse by the NOPD’s lack of communication, threats of arrest for peaceful assembly outside of the building, and inability to control their own mounted patrols,” the spokesperson continued. “When the Zionist second-line, led by former Mayor Cantrell, gleefully paraded in our faces, a Georgia mayor assaulted one of our own. The NOPD chastised us for defending her. Even after filing a complaint with the department they refused to take any action against the official. It is clear what the City of New Orleans defended that night: genocide, hate, and intolerance.”
CAM did not provide a responsive answer in time for publication. Mayor Helena Moreno, in office since mid-January, did not respond to a request for comment. The Rosenberg Brief asked specifically if Moreno would agree to not host CAM in the future.
Israel has committed genocide against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, according to a report released in September 2025 by United Nations Commission.
Editorial note: Joshua Rosenberg is a member of NOSHIP and was present at the protest.
Update: CAM provided a boilerplate “we received your request for comment” response. The story has been updated to acknowledge it.
Update: This story has been updated with more information, 1/31 and 2/1