ANTI-SEMITIC ATTACKS UP 57% ACROSS U.S., 41% IN SAN DIEGO

By Miriam Raftery

February 27, 2018 (San Diego) -- Anti-Semitic incidents in san Diego increased 41 percent last year, with 45 separate incidents reported, according to the Anti-Defamation League’s annual Audit of Anti-Semitic Incidents.

The sharp rise locally was driven largely by a doubling of anti-Semitic incidents on college campuses and other schools, including San Diego State University and UC San Diego.

Nationally, the trend was even worse, with anti-Semitic incidents rising by 57 percent—the largest increase on record since the ADL began tracking such data in 1979.

Last year a total of 1,986 anti-Semitic incidents occurred nationwide ranging from physical assaults to vandalism to attacks on Jewish institutions. 

Equally troubling, anti-Semitic actions rose 98 percent at K-12 schools and 86 percent on college campuses.

Tammy Gillies, director of the Anti-Defamation League in San Diego, says, “We are very concerned by the steep increase in anti-Semitic harassment, incidents and violence in San Diego and nationwide.” 

She adds that ADL works tirelessly to offer anti-bias education in schools, train law enforcement partners on hate crimes, and advocate for communities targeted by hateful rhetoric.

California ranked second highest among all states with 268 incidents of anti-Semitism, trailing only New York, which had 380 incidents.

The rise in anti-Semitic actions is particularly troubling given that it follows the Trump administration’s removal of white Supremacist groups off the federal list of terrorism organizations, since such groups promote hate targeting Jews as well as racial minorities.