Antisemitic Incidents Reach Record High In U.S., Illinois: Report
ILLINOIS — Antisemitic incidents of assault, harassment and vandalism, including 209 in Illinois, reached an all-time high in 2021, according to an Anti-Defamation League report Tuesday.
The ADL’s annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents describes 2,717 attacks on Jewish people last year, a 34 percent year-over-year increase, according to the ADL, which began tracking antisemitic incidents in 1979.
That amounts to an increase of more than seven antisemitic incidents a day.
In Illinois, 14 Antisemitic reported events have taken place already this year, including:
A bomb threat at Synagogue Beth El in Highland Park on March 14
Antisemitic graffiti was found at Springfield High School on March 2
Individuals associated with the Goyim Defense League distributed antisemitic propaganda claiming that every aspect of the Ukrainian government is Jewish in Glenview on March 1
Individuals associated with the Goyim Defense League distributed antisemitic propaganda claiming that every aspect of the COVID-19 agenda is Jewish in Charleston, Illinois on Feb. 28
Individuals associated with the Goyim Defense League distributed antisemitic propaganda claiming that every aspect of the COVID-19 agenda is Jewish in Mattoon, Park Ridge and Champaign in February
The windshield of the car belonging to a congregant of a North Side Chicago synagogue was shattered by three men who had harassed him earlier in the day on Feb. 1
A Jewish man was assaulted in Chicago’s West Ridge neighborhood on Jan. 30
Swastikas were found painted at a synagogue near a Jewish high school in Chicago’s West Ridge neighborhood on Jan. 30
A glass window and door were vandalized at Kol Tuv Kosher Supermarket and Tel-Aviv Kosher Bakery in Chicago's West Ridge neighborhood on Jan. 29
A man threatened a group of Jewish students outside the Yeshivas Tiferes Tzvi Academy in Chicago, yelling, "all of you should be killed,” on Jan. 13
"The increase of anti-Semitic attacks is alarming," said Illinois State Senator Sara Feigenholtz (D-Chicago) said. "Standing in solidarity with the Jewish community is a first step, but people must be upstanders, not bystanders, and speak out against antisemitism."
Other lawmakers also denounced the activities that have taken place over the past year when Illinois saw a 15 percent jump in antisemitic activity between 2020 and 2021, according to the Anti-Defamation League reported the jump in cases around the country and in Illinois.
"The rise in antisemitism in our state and around the world cannot be ignored," Illinois State Senator Laura Fine (D-Glenview) said. "Anti-Semitic rhetoric posted online or on fliers can lead to dangerous actions. We must work together to stand up against hatred in our communities."
Antisemitic incidents “reached a high watermark across virtually every category” in the audit, the ADL said, including:
Jewish institutions such as synagogues and community centers, up 61 percent.
K-12 schools, up 106 percent.
College campuses, up 21 percent.
Physical assaults increased 167 percent, incidents of harassment increased 43 percent, and acts of antisemitic violence rose 14 percent, according to the audit.
The ADL reported a surge in violence during the May 2021 conflict between Israel and Hamas. Antisemitic incidents, including violent attacks on Jewish people, increased 148 percent from the previous May as hundreds of anti-Israel protests took place in dozens of U.S. cities on May 10, the date marking the official start of military action.
“While we have always seen a rise in antisemitic activity during periods of increased hostilities between Israel and terrorist groups, the violence we witnessed in America during the conflict last May was shocking,” ADL chief executive and national director Jonathan A. Greenblatt said in a news release.
“Jews were being attacked in the streets for no other reason than the fact that they were Jewish, and it seemed as if the working assumption was that if you were Jewish, you were blameworthy for what was happening half a world away.”
Anti-Israel protests accounted for only a portion of the violent attacks on Jews in 2021, and not the largest portion, according to the ADL. Physical assaults also spiked in November and December, when there were no contributing geopolitical events.
Nearly 18 percent of the incidents last year — at least 484 — were attributable to actions by domestic extremists, the ADL said.
“When it comes to antisemitic activity in America, you cannot point to any single ideology or belief system, and in many cases, we simply don’t know the motivation,” Greenblatt said in the release. “But we do know that Jews are experiencing more antisemitic incidents than we have in this country in at least 40 years, and that’s a deeply troubling indicator of larger societal fissures.”
2021 Findings: By The Numbers
Total antisemitic incidents: 2,717, up 34 percent
Assaults: 88, up 167 percent
Victims: 131
Use of deadly weapons: 11
Fatalities: 0
Harassment: 1,776 incidents, up 43 percent
Vandalism: 853 incidents, up 14 percent
Swastikas used in 578 incidents
States reporting incidents: 50 and the District of Columbia, with the following states accounting for 58 percent of total incidents:
New York: 416
New Jersey: 370
California: 367
Florida: 190
Michigan: 112
Texas: 112
Antisemitic incidents at Jewish Institutions: 525
Harassment: 413
Vandalism: 101
Assaults: 11
About 25 percent, or 111 incidents, were linked to anti-Zionist or anti-Israel sentiments. Domestic extremist groups or individuals inspired by extremist ideology were responsible for 484 antisemitic incidents, 18 percent of the total, the ADL said.
White supremacist groups and extremists were responsible for 422 antisemitic propaganda distributions, a 52 percent increase from the year before.
A total of 345 antisemitic incidents in 2021 involved references to Israel or Zionism; of them, 68 appeared in the form of white supremacist propaganda efforts, which the ADL said to attempt to strengthen anti-Israel and antisemitic beliefs.
This article originally appeared on the Across Illinois Patch
