Temple University student defends antisemitic incident at Barstool bar
Mo Khan, 21, identified himself as the Temple student who on Saturday posted a video of a woman who appears to be a server at Barstool Sansom Street in Center City holding a sign bearing an antisemitic message.
In a video posted on X on Tuesday night, Khan lashed out at Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, who is Jewish and has repeatedly posted about the incident to his millions of social media followers.
'They have no right to destroy my life over free speech and ultimately something that was an edgy joke,' Khan said in the video. 'Frankly, they're more worried about destroying and uprooting me than the thousands of people getting destroyed and uprooted in genocide.'
'That sign had no effect in terms of killing any Jews. However, Israel kills thousands of people on a daily basis,' the student added. 'Dave Portnoy and the greater Jewish community are acting as if they are the victims, when this whole time I am the victim.'
After posting the hateful video of the sign, Khan called himself a citizen journalist and shared information about a GiveSendGo fundraiser he started after the incident. He also urged Portnoy to apologize and asked for restitution.
'He is lynching me, absolutely canceling me in any way possible and ruining my life,' Khan said.
On Tuesday night, Portnoy posted a video of his own on social media accusing Khan of initially taking responsibility and then backtracking. Portnoy also said he rescinded his offer to Khan and another person involved in the incident to send them to Auschwitz, the notorious German Nazi concentration camp in Poland, to learn about the Holocaust.
'You f---ing antisemitic piece of s---,' Portnoy, 48, said. 'And I tried to show grace. ... I tried to actually, now I feel dumb, to make it right. And now he does this video, blaming it on me.'
Also on Tuesday night, Khan appeared on the internet show "Stew Peters Live" to defend his actions. Peters is known for promoting antisemitic beliefs and misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic.
On the show, Khan said that he was trying to raise awareness about the Israeli military's actions in the war in Gaza. The profane banner Khan showcased in his initial video attacked Jews but did not mention Israel or its policies. Many Jews have expressed their opposition to or concerns about Israel's actions in Gaza.
'It was clearly provocative, because it reminds people of what Israel's actions are doing across the country,' Khan said. 'So, I recorded it, uploaded it, didn't expect much backlash.'
Khan also argued that his free speech rights are being violated. The Constitution protects undue regulation on speech by government. Barstool Sports and Temple are both private entities.
The Philadelphia Police Department confirmed on Sunday that it was investigating the incident, but offered no updates on Tuesday. Khan has not been charged with any crime.
Temple University on Sunday confirmed that it suspended a student, but did not name the student.
On Wednesday, the university's president, John Fry, appeared to condemn Khan's interview on "Stew Peters Live."
"Yesterday, we became aware that a student participated in an interview with a media personality who has a history of producing extreme antisemitic and racist content," Fry said in a statement. "The content of this interview was both appalling and deeply offensive. Antisemitism is not tolerated at Temple."
Fry added that students who are found to be in violation of the university's conduct code could face expulsion.
The incident comes amid the Trump administration's efforts to strip some universities, including Harvard and Columbia, of federal funding over criticisms that the universities are not doing enough to combat antisemitism on their campuses.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
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