‘Nurses’ episode removed from NBC digital platforms following accusations of anti-Semitism

NBC has removed an episode of the show 'Nurses' after a scene spaked accusations of anti-Semitism. Deadline reported, that the show's season finale was pulled from the network’s digital platforms following blowback from Jewish organizations over a scene in which an Orthodox Jewish character refuses a bone graft for his leg to repair an injury.

"The graft, where does it come from?" the character asks before a doctor explains the graft would be "harvested from a deceased donor."

"A dead goyim leg … from an Arab, a woman," the patient’s father says in the clip, to which a nurse responds: "Oh, God forbid, an Arab woman."

Despite being a plural word, the episode makes use of the term "goyim" as if it were singular, which is commonly done by antisemites when accusing Jews of being hateful of non-Jews. The term "goy," the singular equivalent, means non-Jew in Hebrew and Yiddish and is sometimes viewed as derogatory.

The attitudes towards non-Jews and women depicted in the scene is also inconsistent with Jewish law, which does not place any limits on medical transplants originating from non-Jews or women. In fact, in the Jewish religion, saving a life is considered to be a priority which supersedes most religious laws.

National and international Jewish advocacy groups like the Simon Wiesenthal Center and StopAntisemitism.org immediately called out the network.

"First @nbcsnl now @nbc 'Nurses' airs a viciously antisemitic episode filled with lies about Orthodox Jews, 'A dead goyim leg … from an arab, a woman, G-d forbid an Arab women … Israel … without this next step you won’t walk again.' Lies and libels lead to VIOLENCE!"

The Simon Wiesenthal Center said in a statement. "The writers of this scene check all the boxes of ignorance and pernicious negative stereotypes right down to the name of the patient, Israel — payouts [sidelocks] and all. In one scene, NBC has insulted and demonized religious Jews and Judaism."

NBC did not return multiple media requests for comment and instead yanked the episode. Deadline cited an anonymous source from the network who claimed that NBC had been contacted by multiple Jewish advocacy groups regarding the episode.

According to Deadline, the Canadian TV series is produced by ICF Films and eOne in association with Corus Entertainment, and was used by NBC "to fill a hole in a primetime lineup that had been derailed by the coronavirus pandemic." The show, including the controversial episode, had originally aired in Canada in 2020 before being broadcast in the US.

The controversy comes only days after Saturday Night Live, which is also owned by NBC, featured comedian Michael Che in the 'Weekend Update' segment falsely claiming that Israel is only vaccinating its Jewish citizens against coronavirus.

"Israel is reporting that they’ve vaccinated half of their population. I’m going to guess it’s the Jewish half," Michael Che said, even though more than two thirds of Israel's Arab citizens over the age of 60 have already been vaccinated against coronavirus.