A recent Anti-Defamation League (ADL) survey of Americans Jews found that nearly 10% have been subjected to an anti-Semitic assault in the past five years.
The survey, which was published on March 31, asked more than 500 respondents from January 7-15 if they have “been physically attacked because you are Jewish”; 9% answered in the affirmative. The survey also found that 63% of American Jews have experienced or witnessed an anti-Semitic assault, and 25% said they were targeted with anti-Semitic remarks or threats.
When it comes to online extremism, 36% of Americans Jews said they have experienced some form of anti-Semitic harassment on the Internet, and 13% have said that they don’t identify themselves as Jewish on social media.
Overall, nearly 60% of Jewish Americans said that they don’t feel as safe in the country today as they did 10 years ago, nearly 50% are scared that their synagogue will be targeted in an anti-Semitic attack, and 6% have stayed clear of synagogues and Jewish organizations due to fears of being targeted. Additionally, 33% of those who have been harassed said that they have trouble sleeping at night.
Compared to the ADL’s 2020 report, the number of American Jews who have either witnessed or experienced anti-Semitism in 2021 is incrementally higher. The percentage of Jewish Americans who took protective measures against anti-Semitism also increased from 27% in 2020 to 32% in 2021. However, the proportion of American Jews who are scared their synagogues will be targeted slightly declined from 55% in 2020 to 49% in 2021. The percentage of American Jews reporting anti-Semitic incidents online also declined from 43% in 2020 to 29% in 2021, which the ADL speculates is due to people being resigned to “tech companies’ perceived lack of responsiveness to complaints about online bigotry and hate.”
“Looking back on the past five years, which were bookended by the antisemitism in Charlottesville in 2017 and the hateful symbols on display during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, it is understandable that the level of anxiety is rising and concerns about communal safety are on everyone’s minds,” ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said in a statement. “These findings reinforce the need for a whole-of-society approach to combat antisemitism. Whether it appears on social media or on a synagogue, antisemitism has no place in our communities. We need corporate and government leaders to step up to ensure that it does not gain a foothold on social media or in broader society.”
