The large spike in antisemitic incidents that adopted the Oct. 7 Hamas terror assaults in 2023 continued final 12 months, in accordance with knowledge compiled by the Anti-Defamation League.
The ADL recorded a complete of 638 incidents of assault, harassment, and vandalism final 12 months within the New England area — the fourth 12 months in a row that antisemitic incidents elevated and broke the earlier all-time recorded excessive.
The 638 reported incidents final 12 months was a 213% surge in incidents within the New England area since 2022. The area covers Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Maine and Vermont.
Massachusetts final 12 months had the fifth most recorded antisemitic incidents within the nation, with a complete of 438.
“The persistent increase in antisemitic incidents over the past four years is a stark reminder that antisemitism continues to impact our communities,” mentioned Samantha Joseph, ADL New England’s regional director.
“Particularly concerning is the continued proliferation of extremist incidents and the rise of attacks against Orthodox Jews,” Joseph added. “The alarming manifestations of antisemitism in 2024 instill fear and are reminders that much work remains to be done.”
ADL’s annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents began again in 1979.
There have been 9,354 reported incidents of antisemitic assault, harassment and vandalism throughout the nation final 12 months. This complete represents a 5% enhance from 2023 — already a record-setting 12 months — and a 344% spike over the previous 5 years.
“This horrifying level of antisemitism should never be accepted and yet, as our data shows, it has become a persistent and grim reality for American Jewish communities,” mentioned ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt. “Jewish Individuals proceed to be harassed, assaulted and focused for who they’re each day and in all places they go.
“But let’s be clear: we will remain proud of our Jewish culture, religion and identities, and we will not be intimidated by bigots,” Greenblatt added.
In Massachusetts, there have been 276 reported incidents of harassment, 157 incidents of vandalism (11% enhance from the 141 incidents in 2023), and 5 assaults. A complete of 108 cities and cities in Massachusetts noticed no less than one antisemitic incident. Boston had probably the most reported incidents with 96.
Final 12 months’s complete variety of incidents (438) was a 188% spike from 152 incidents reported in 2022. In 2023, ADL recorded 439 antisemitic incidents within the Bay State.
The 4 states with extra reported antisemitic incidents than Massachusetts (438) have been: New York (1,437), California (1,345), New Jersey (719), and Pennsylvania (465).
In Massachusetts final 12 months, there have been 17 reported bomb threats, 275 incidents that have been associated to Israel/Zionism, 87 incidents involving a swastika, and 37 incidents with antisemitic white supremacist propaganda.
“In 2024, hatred toward Israel was a driving force behind antisemitism across the U.S., with more than half of all antisemitic incidents referencing Israel or Zionism,” mentioned Oren Segal, ADL senior VP for Counter-Extremism and Intelligence.
There have been 107 incidents on faculty campuses in Massachusetts — which was the third most within the nation. One incident was at Smith Faculty, the place officers discovered a spray-painted Israeli flag with a swastika changing the Star of David.
Additionally on the Berklee Faculty of Music, a pupil reportedly advised a Jewish classmate that “Jews belong in the oven.”
In non-Jewish Okay-12 colleges, incidents have been reported throughout the area involving swastikas and Heil Hitler salutes.
Different incidents embody a swastika being carved right into a tree on a Jewish particular person’s dwelling in Belmont, and a person waving a gun in entrance of a Jewish Neighborhood Middle in western Massachusetts and yelling antisemitic threats.
The ADL tracked a troubling rise in antisemitic incidents focusing on Orthodox Jews, with a leap to 12 reported circumstances in comparison with 4 within the New England area in 2023. Nearly all of incidents came about in Massachusetts with 10.
One incident concerned a person yelling at a Jewish youngster, who was carrying a kippah, whereas procuring with their mom at a Massachusetts kosher grocer — a repeated incident of harassment at this location.
