* Anti-Defamation League Midwest…

Antisemitic incidents reached a historically high level across the United States in 2021, with a total of 2,717 incidents of assault, harassment and vandalism reported to ADL (the Anti-Defamation League). This is the highest number of recorded incidents against American Jews since ADL started tracking such data in 1979. ADL today released its Annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents for 2021.

Locally, ADL Midwest reported a total of 175 antisemitic incidents in Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin, combined. This was a 62% increase from the 108 combined incidents reported in 2020 – and 202% higher than the total number of incidents reported just five years ago for 2016.

Broken down, across the region in 2021, there were:

• 134 acts of antisemitic harassment, up from 73 in 2020 (an 84% increase)
• 39 acts of antisemitic vandalism, up from 34 in 2020 (a 15% increase)
• 2 acts of antisemitic assault, up from 1 in 2020 (a 100 % increase)

“Antisemitic incidents in the Midwest are reaching a watershed level, and our team is responding to incidents on a near daily basis,” saidADL Midwest Regional Director David Goldenberg. “The common thread linking the perpetrators of these incidents is not political ideology, geography, race or ethnicity: it is hate against the Jewish community - whether their own hate or hate linked to generations old antisemitic stereotypes. A wholistic, systemic approach is needed across communities in response. This includes speaking out, naming antisemitism when we see it; sharing facts through education and research; and showing strength as neighbors united against hate.”

Minnesota and Illinois are among the 20 states in the country with the highest total number of antisemitic incidents reported in 2021. Specific state-by-state totals include:

• Illinois – 15% increase from 2020 to 2021 (46 to 53), a 430% increase from 2016 (10 to 53)
• Indiana – 6% decrease from 2020 to 2021 (17 to 16), a 266% increase from 2016 (6 to 16)
• Minnesota – 226% increase from 2020 to 2021 (23 to 75), a 375% increase from 2016 (20 to 75)
• North Dakota – 100% increase from 2020 to 2021 (0 to 1), equal to increase from incidents in 2016
• South Dakota – 600% increase from 2020 to 2021 (1 to 7), a 700% increase from 2016 (0 to 7)
• Wisconsin – 10% increase from 2020 to 2021 (21 to 23), a 5% increase from 2016 (22 to 23)

In 2021, ADL Midwest also tracked a sharp increase in reported bias and hate incidents in K-12 and university environments; these incidents targeted a cross-section of historically vulnerable communities and were often heightened by tensions around masking, COVID-19, and unfounded arguments about Critical Race Theory.

A sortable and downloadable list of antisemitic incidents in the region can be viewed on ADL’s H.E.A.T. Map here.

* Sun-Times…

Nationally, the incidents have spiked 114% since 2016 and 430% locally. The data includes incidents that specifically target Jews or Jewish institutions; a swastika drawn on a random building, for example, wouldn’t be included in the ADL’s numbers.

Jews “are more concerned and feel more unsafe than they have in decades,” he said.

Goldenberg said the violence that erupted last May between Israel and Palestine led to “a significant surge” in antisemitism nationwide, though he noted there were no other clear catalysts for the “dramatic increase” throughout the year. No one was killed in any of the 88 nationwide assaults, the audit found.

Meanwhile, Goldenberg said college campuses have increasingly become hotbeds for white supremacist and antisemitic flyering campaigns, including at the University of Illinois-Champaign-Urbana. The audit also revealed a 21% increase in antisemitic harassment on campuses, and Goldenberg said there’s been a “steady uptick” at Urbana-Champaign, as well as at the University of Illinois-Chicago and the University of Chicago.

Those three Illinois campuses, along with DePaul University, have also seen “anti-Israel” demonstrations “quickly turn into antisemitic activities,” Goldenberg said.