Anti-Semitic incidents hit record last year: ADL

Anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S. in 2019 occurred at their highest rate in at least 40 years, with a record of 2,100 acts of assault, vandalism and harassment reported across the U.S., according to a report released by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Tuesday. 

The total number of anti-Semitic incidents increased 12 percent over the previous year, including a 56 percent increase in assaults, according to the ADL. 

Anti-Semitic incidents were reported in nearly all U.S. states and Washington, D.C., with more than half of the assaults nationwide reported in New York City. Hawaii and Alaska were the only states without reports of anti-Semitic incidents, according to the ADL’s report. 

The ADL’s audit, which includes both criminal and noncriminal acts of harassment and intimidation, is compiled using information provided by victims, law enforcement and community leaders. The ADL has been tracking nationwide anti-Semitic incidents since 1979. 

“This was a year of unprecedented antisemitic activity, a time when many Jewish communities across the country had direct encounters with hate,” ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. 

“This contributed to a rising climate of anxiety and fear in our communities. We are committed to fighting back against this rising tide of hate and will double down on our work with elected leaders, schools, and communities to end the cycle of hatred,” he added. 

In 2019, the ADL reported five deaths directly linked to anti-Semitic violence and an additional 91 individuals targeted in physical assaults. 

Among the deadly attacks against the American Jewish community last year were the shooting at Chabad of Poway in California, the shooting at a kosher grocery store in Jersey City, N.J., and the stabbing in Monsey, N.Y., on Hanukkah. 

The total number of anti-Semitic incidents include 1,127 harassment incidents, 919 vandalism incidents and 61 assault incidents, based on the report. 

The states with the highest number of incidents were New York, with 430, New Jersey, with 345, California, with 330, Massachusetts, with 114, and Pennsylvania with 109. Combined, the states account for nearly 45 percent of the total number of anti-Semitic incidents in the U.S. last year.