Harassment against Jews, Muslims on the rise since Hamas attacks

Reports included graffiti, slurs or anonymous postings, as well as physical violence

Since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks, Muslim and Jewish civil rights groups say they’ve seen a significant increase in reports of harassment, bias, and, in some cases, physical assaults against members of their communities.

Over the last two weeks, as war broke out between Israel and Hamas, the Anti-Defamation League and the Council on American-Islamic Relations have seen an increase in reported incidents, many of which involved violence or threats against protesters at rallies in support of Israel or in support of Palestinians. Other reported attacks and harassment were directed at random Muslim or Jewish people in public.

According to a spokesperson for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the organization’s chapters and national office received 774 reports of bias-related acts between October 7 and October 24. During that time, the national headquarters had 110 direct reports, compared to 63 for the entire month of August. According to the council’s leaders, this is the largest wave of complaints since December 2015, when then-presidential candidate Donald Trump declared his intention to ban Muslim immigration to the United States in the aftermath of the San Bernadino mass shooting, which killed 14 people.

Since Oct. 7, police have reported an Illinois landlord fatally stabbing a 6-year-old Muslim boy and injuring the boy’s mother, as well as the arrest of a Michigan man after he allegedly asked people on social media to join him in hunting Palestinians.

“Public officials must do everything in their power to prevent the current wave of hatred from spiraling out of control,” said Corey Saylor, research and advocacy director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

Saylor observed that former President George W. Bush’s visit to a mosque following the 9/11 attacks helped to calm the backlash felt in Muslim communities. He urged President Joe Biden to pay a visit to Americans who had lost family members in Gaza.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the Anti-Defamation League’s Center on Extremism reported that the organization received at least 312 reports of antisemitic acts between Oct. 7 and Oct. 23 — compared to 64 during the same time period in 2022. Graffiti, slurs, or anonymous postings were among the reports, as was physical violence, such as a woman being punched in the face in New York by an attacker who, according to the league, said, “You are Jewish.”

The 312 reports included 109 anti-Israel sentiments expressed or proclaimed at rallies that the Anti-Defamation League’s Center on Extremism determined to be “explicit or strong implicit support for Hamas and/or violence against Jews in Israel,” according to the statement.

Protesters at several rallies used the slogan “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” which the Anti-Defamation League and other Jewish organizations have interpreted as a call to demolish the state of Israel. Many Palestinian activists say they do not want Israel destroyed, but rather freedom of movement and equal rights and protections for Palestinians throughout the country.

The Anti-Defamation League urged strong reactions to anti-Semitic posts, rhetoric, and actions. According to the organization, violent messages mentioning Jews on platforms such as Telegram Messenger have increased even more than reports of in-person incidents.

“It is incumbent on all leaders, from political leaders to CEOs to university presidents, to forcefully and unequivocally condemn antisemitism and terrorism,” Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt stated in a statement.

Jewish civil rights organizations in the United Kingdom, France, and other countries in Europe, Latin America, North Africa, and elsewhere have also reported an increase in antisemitic acts in recent weeks compared to 2022. According to League officials, London police received 218 reports of antisemitic crimes between October 1 and October 18, which is 13 times more than the number reported in 2022.