{"id":85653,"date":"2022-11-24T15:34:00","date_gmt":"2022-11-24T19:34:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=85653"},"modified":"2022-12-06T14:43:38","modified_gmt":"2022-12-06T18:43:38","slug":"why-is-antisemitism-increasing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/why-is-antisemitism-increasing\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Is U.S. Antisemitism Increasing at an Alarming Rate?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Why is antisemitism increasing in the United States recently? What are antisemitic incidents? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Antisemitism has reached a 40-year high in the U.S. and is on the rise. The cause for this increase in antisemitism is primarily fueled by public figures and social media spreading anti-Jewish conspiracy theories since the 2016 elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read on to learn more about why antisemitism is increasing in the U.S. so rapidly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Increasing Antisemitism Infects the U.S.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

On November 4, 2022, the FBI issued an urgent warning to New Jersey synagogues and residents<\/a> to take extra security precautions following a \u201cbroad threat\u201d to synagogues in the state. The alert put Jewish Americans around the country on edge and left many wondering why antisemitism is increasing at such an alarming rate in the U.S. today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although an arrest was made in the New Jersey incident, the threat served as yet another reminder of the ever-present danger and fear many have become accustomed to since before the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history<\/a>\u2014the 2018 massacre at Pittsburgh\u2019s Tree of Life synagogue, which left 11 dead and six wounded. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nearly 2.4% of the U.S. population\u2014roughly 5.8 million people\u2014is Jewish<\/a>, and a growing number confront the reality of rising antisemitism each day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For nearly 15 years, antisemitism wasn’t increasing in the U.S.\u2014in fact, it was on the decline\u2014until 2016. In the five years that followed, the number nearly tripled<\/a>. In 2021, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL)\u2014which records antisemitic incidents nationwide\u2014found that antisemitic acts had increased 34% from the year before<\/a>. The 2,717 antisemitic incidents identified that year\u2014an average of more than seven a day\u2014is the highest number the organization has seen in more than 40 years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Are Antisemitism and Antisemitic Incidents?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Antisemitism is the hatred of and bias against Jews because they\u2019re Jewish<\/a>, a belief often cultivated through religious teachings and political efforts rooted in prejudiced and stereotyped views of Jews as inferior, and that isolate, oppress, and harm Jews. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ADL classifies antisemitic incidents as criminal and non-criminal harassment, vandalism, and assault against Jewish individuals and groups<\/a>, as reported by victims, law enforcement and the media. To better understand the sudden increase in antisemitism, we’ll describe how the 2021 incidents were classified by the ADL.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of the 2,717 incidents the group recorded in 2021: <\/p>\n\n\n\n