New ADL report finds 34% increase in antisemitism, with 2,717 reported incidents in 2021
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In the last several weeks, multiple reports have been released noting the rise in hate and bias against minority communities. Days after a report shared the increase in bias-based incidents against Muslim Americans in the U.S., the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released a report Tuesday noting the number of incidents involving assault, vandalism, and harassment targeting the Jewish community.
According to the audit report, crimes against Jewish people have reached a historic high of more than 2,700 reported incidents, a 34% increase nationwide compared to 2,026 in 2020. The actual numbers are expected to be higher due to the number of incidents that go unreported.
This isn’t the first time ADL reports have found a rise in antisemitism. The rise in antisemitism has been consistent for years. According to CNN, the ADL has been tracking such incidents since 1979. This year has been the highest the organization has seen in the past 40 years, making it a “deeply troubling indicator of larger societal fissures.”
“It is despicable and disgraceful that it happens, and there’s not enough people in authority calling it out,” said ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt.
“People beaten and brutalized in broad daylight, without any provocation, attacked for the crime of wearing a kippah,” Greenblatt added.
Of the 2,717 incidents reported, 1,776 were described as harassment in which one or more Jews or those perceived to be Jewish were the targets of antisemitic slurs, stereotypes, or conspiracy theories, the report said. At least 850 incidents included vandalism of Jewish places of worship or businesses; 88 incidents were assaults.
Every state and the District of Columbia reported incidents rising, with the most occurring in New York, New Jersey, California, Florida, Michigan, and Texas. The report found that nearly 60% of the total incidents were in those six states.
According to the report, New York has the highest rate of antisemitic incidents in the country. There were 416 incidents reported in New York in 2021, a 24% increase since 2020. Fifty-one were assaults, the most ever recorded with a 325% increase from 2020.
Comparatively, California reported 367 incidents of antisemitic hate and harassment in 2021, setting a record that has carried into 2022.
“In the Bay Area, notwithstanding the fact that, broadly speaking, it’s a more progressive place … we see antisemitism emanating from the far right and the far left,” Seth Brysk, director of ADL’s Central Pacific Region, told the SF Chronicle, noting that each incident targets a community rather than an individual. “Every swastika tagged on a wall can harm scores of people,” he said.
One of the solutions the ADL offered was better educating students about bias in schools.
“We need to see schools introduce anti-bias, anti-hate, Holocaust education content to their students, so we can inoculate our kids before intolerance takes hold,” Greenblatt said.
The report also indicated that the ADL plans to work with law enforcement and other officials to track trends in efforts to prevent further antisemitic incidents.