Sunny Hostin's daughter Paloma has sparked backlash online after posting a controversial pro-Palestine message.
The StopAntisemitism X account highlighted a SnapChat post by 18-year-old Paloma, who just graduated from Fieldstone, an elite $63,000-a-year high school in New York City.
On a selfie, Paloma wrote: 'Now that I got my diploma: From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.'
The phrase - referencing the land from the River Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea - is considered by many to be a call for the end of the state of Israel.
Paloma, whose grandfather is Jewish, added: 'And to all the mfs who screenshotted my stories and showed them to your parents trying to get me suspended or expelled, look at me now.'
The StopAntisemitism X account highlighted a SnapChat post by 18-year-old Paloma, who just graduated from Fieldstone, an elite $63,000-a-year high school in New York City
After her pro-Palestine post was released on X, Paloma, who is headed to Cornell in the fall, posted a statement explaining her words.
'After the elation of graduating from high school, it struck me that we are living in very serious times.
'I woke up feeling very heavy about the humanitarian catastrophe in the Middle East. Both sides have endured unimaginable loss and suffering. Today, my prayers are with everyone affected by these tragedies.'
A source close to the situation told DailyMail.com that Paloma did not realize the connotation of the phrase 'from the river to the sea.'
Students in the US have become galvanized by the war in Gaza, where over 30,000 have been killed after Hamas attacked Israel in October, killing over 1,200.
After her pro-Palestine post was released on X, Paloma, who is headed to Cornell in the fall, posted a statement explaining her words
Paloma Hostin and Sunny Hostin at the premiere of Hocus Pocus 2 in 2022
The demonstrations have included the question of whether certain phrases — including 'From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!' — cross the line into antisemitism.
Jewish students have reported feeling unsafe on their campuses as activists increasingly target anyone they believe to be associated with Israel.
Earlier this month, leadersof three large public school systems strongly denied allegations that they let antisemitism run rampant in their schools.
As part of a series of hearings on antisemitism, a House Education and Workforce subcommittee sought testimony from leaders of the New York City Public Schools, the Berkeley Unified School District in California and the Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland.
The first of the antisemitism hearings to focus on K-12 education comes amid a wave of pro-Palestinian student protests that have washed across dozens of US universities and a growing number of high schools.
Sunny pictured with her son Gabriel, who goes to Harvard, and her daughter Paloma
Sunny's husbandEmmanuel Hostin pictured with their daughter Paloma in a post shared in February 2023
Republican lawmakers peppered the school leaders with questions about what they consider anti-Semitic. Asked if the phrase 'from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free' is anti-Semitic, all three generally said yes, though with some equivocation.
'It is if it is calling for the elimination of the Jewish people in Israel,' Berkeley Superintendent Enikia Ford Morthel said.
'And I will also say that I recognize that it does have different meanings.'
Both New York City and Montgomery Public Schools are subjects of Education Department civil rights investigations into allegations of antisemitism. Both cases center on whether the districts responded to harassment of students in a manner consistent with Title VI, which prevents harassment based on shared ancestry.
Last year, Sonnyrevealed that her daughter Paloma was born with Brown syndrome - a rare condition which limits the movement of the tendon that attaches to the outside of the eye.
Pro-Palestine demonstrators rally, holding placards expressing their opinions outside of the John A. Paulson Center at New York University on May 3
Police arrest protesters during pro-Palestinian demonstrations at The City College Of New York
Sunny said her daughter has special devices to help her read, as she declared: 'It's not anything to be ashamed of.'
Sunny, who also has son Gabriel, 21, with her husband Emmanuel, opened up about the condition as she addressed the moment Paloma rang her live on air midway through an interview with Arnold Schwarzenegger.
She said: 'I've worked for about six months to get her an accommodation so that she could get longer time on her ACTs for reading, she just needs the extra time. And she just got her ACT score back and she just scored in the top ten per cent of the country and so she forgot and she immediately texted.'
Sunny, who switched her phone off when it started ringing mid-interview, confirmed she turned it back on during the commercial break to see a text message from Paloma.
'She finally got her accommodation!' Sunny said, sounding delighted. 'Children that have certain disabilities, you know it's not anything to be ashamed of and we're not ashamed of it. We've been advocates for her and she blew it out of the water and that is why my phone rang!'
Sunny's son Gabrial is a student at Harvard.
