Media release: Anti-Defamation League…

United States: The massive spike in antisemitic incidents following the Oct. 7 massacre in Israel continued in 2024, with totals again exceeding any other annual tally in the past 46 years. This is the fourth year in a row that antisemitic incidents increased and broke the previous all-time high. It is also the first time that incidents containing elements related to Israel or Zionism made up a majority of all incidents (58 percent of the total).

There were 9,354 incidents of antisemitic assault, harassment and vandalism across the country in 2024, according to ADL’s (the Anti-Defamation League) annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, released today. This total represents a 5 percent increase from 2023 (already a record-setting year), a 344 percent increase over the past five years, an 893 percent increase over the past 10 years and is the highest level recorded since ADL started tracking this data in 1979. The 12-month total for 2024 averaged more than 25 targeted anti-Jewish incidents in the U.S. per day, more than one an hour.

“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,” said Jonathan Greenblatt, ADL CEO. “Jewish Americans continue to be harassed, assaulted and targeted for who they are on a daily basis and everywhere 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.”

Antisemitic Incidents related to Israel or Zionism

In 2024, for the first time, a majority of all incidents (58 percent, or 5,452 incidents) were related to Israel. Of all Israel-related incidents, 2,596 took place at anti-Israel rallies in the form of antisemitic speeches, chants, signs, and slogans. (About half of the more than 5,000 anti-Israel rallies tracked by ADL in 2024 contained antisemitic expressions; those that did not contain antisemitic elements were not included in the Audit. When antisemitic expressions of this sort appeared at a rally, ADL tabulated them as a single incident regardless of how many times they were repeated or how many different forms they took.)

Activity and rhetoric documented at these rallies included: justification or glorification of antisemitic violence, promotion of classic antisemitic tropes including blood libel, conspiracy theories and signage equating Judaism or Zionism with Nazism, celebration of the anniversary of Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023 terror attack in Israel, and unapologetic support for terrorism, designated terrorist organizations and their leaders.

Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) were the two most active organizers or co-sponsors of protests where antisemitic incidents occurred, and combined were involved in over 50 percent of the protests in this category.

“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,” said Oren Segal, ADL Senior Vice President for Counter-Extremism and Intelligence. “These incidents, along with all those documented in the Audit, serve as a clear reminder that silence is not an option. Good people must stand up, push back, and confront antisemitism wherever it appears. And that starts with understanding what fuels it and learning to recognize it in all its forms. All the data is available in the H.E.A.T. Map, highlighting our commitment to transparency.”

Major Findings

  • Assaults: 196 incidents (a 21 percent increase from 2023) were categorized as assault, defined as cases where Jewish people (or people perceived to be Jewish) were targeted with physical violence accompanied by evidence of antisemitic animus. Orthodox Jews were targeted in 30 percent of assaults. The 196 incidents of assault targeted at least 250 victims, none of these assaults were fatal.
     
  • Vandalism: 2,606 incidents (a 20 percent increase from 2023) were categorized as vandalism, defined as cases where property was damaged along with evidence of antisemitic intent or where there was an antisemitic impact on Jews. Swastikas, which are generally interpreted as symbols of antisemitic hatred, were present in 37 percent of these cases.
  • Harassment: 6,552 incidents (up from 6,535 incidents recorded in 2023) were categorized as harassment, defined as cases where one or more Jewish people (or people perceived to be Jewish) were harassed with language that includes antisemitic slurs, stereotypes or tropes. There were 647 bomb threats. The harassment category also includes many of the expressions of antisemitism occurring at anti-Israel rallies described above.
  • Incidents on (or around) college and university campuses rose more steeply than any other location type. In 2024, ADL recorded 1,694 antisemitic incidents on college campuses, which is 84 percent higher than in 2023. Campus incidents comprised 18 percent of all incidents, a larger proportion than in any previous Audit.
  • Antisemitic activity also increased by 19 percent in public areas (3,452 incidents) and by 11 percent at business establishments, including Jewish-owned businesses. 860 incidents were reported at non-Jewish K-12 schools in 2024, a decrease of 26 percent. Given the insidious nature of bullying, compounded by the fact that many children may not feel empowered to report their experiences, it is likely that the actual number of school-based antisemitic incidents was significantly higher than the data reported in the Audit.
  • Antisemitic incidents occurred in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The states with the highest levels of incidents were New York (1,437) and California (1,344). Their largest cities, New York City (976) and Los Angeles (297), also reported the most incidents.

White Supremacist Propaganda

There were 962 antisemitic propaganda incidents (dissemination of antisemitic print materials and public events) connected to white supremacist groups last year, down 17 percent from 2023. Incidents were recorded in 47 states and the District of Columbia. Three groups (Patriot Front, Goyim Defense League and the White Lives Matter network) were responsible for 94 percent of this activity.

Targeting of Jewish Institutions

While incidents decreased by 14 percent at Jewish institutions, they remained elevated compared to pre-October 7 levels, with 1,702 incidents recorded in 2024. Moreover, assaults at Jewish institutions more than doubled (from 9 to 20 incidents) and vandalism increased by 39 percent (from 148 to 205 incidents).

Jewish organizations were targeted with a total of 627 bomb threats, 89 percent of which targeted synagogues. Congregants were harassed and even assaulted; some anti-Israel groups also escalated their tactics, protesting Jewish religious and cultural institutions on dozens of occasions.

Read about the ADL’s methodology on the ADL website HERE.

Read the AP story on the report – Anti-Defamation League says anger at Israel is now the driving force behind antisemitism in the US – on Stuff HERE.