Antisemitic Incidents In Illinois, U.S. Remain At Record Highs

Chicago IL

05 May, 2021

11:01 AM

Description

CHICAGO, IL — Harassment, vandalism and other violence targeting American Jews in Illinois and other states remained at historically high levels in 2020, the Anti-Defamation League confirmed in a new report released this week. Nationwide, the ADL reported 2,024 incidents in its annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, released this week. The final tally marks a 4 percent decline from 2019, when antisemitic incidents in the United States hit a record-high number. Of these incidents, 53 were recorded in Illinois, according to the report. "While any decline in the data is encouraging, we still experienced a year in which antisemitic acts remained at a disturbingly high level despite lockdowns and other significant changes in our daily lives and interactions with others," Jonathan Greenblatt, ADL CEO and national director, said in a news release. "We can't let our guard down. As communities begin to open up and people spend more time in person with others, we must remain vigilant." Vigilance could prevent further incidents that have happened across the region in 2021 alone. In Champaign, an employee at the University of Illinois reported that someone drew a swastika on a shared screen during a virtual meeting on Zoom in February. A university student also reported that he was studying in his apartment when he heard throwing eggs at the Israeli flag that was displayed outside of his off-campus residence. In Long Grove earlier this year, a local synagogue received a threatening voicemail from a caller who left a message saying, "F---- the damn Jews. They need to f------- die." A synagogue in Glencoe also reported that it too had received harassing voicemails while an Evanston resident reported that someone had left threatening and harassing messages on their Facebook account. Last year marked the third-highest year for incidents against American Jews since ADL started tracking such data in 1979. When it broke down the number of incidents, the report confirmed a total of 1,242 incidents of harassment, a 10 percent increase from 2019. At the same time, acts of vandalism and assault declined by 18 percent and 49 percent, respectively. No antisemitic fatalities were reported in 2020. The report mainly attributed the overall drop in reported cases to the shift to online learning; reported incidents at U.S. schools and colleges plummeted during the pandemic, according to the report. Antisemitic incidents were reported in 47 states and the District of Columbia, the report says. The states with the highest numbers of incidents were New York with 336 incidents, New Jersey with 295, California with 289, Florida with 127 and Pennsylvania with 101. Combined, these states accounted for nearly 57 percent of total incidents. See the full 2020 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents.