Rising Hate: A Grim New Chapter for American Jews
When Sarah, a sophomore at UNC Chapel Hill, returned to her dorm in late 2024, she found her mezuzah stolen and an antisemitic slur scrawled across her door. For Jewish students like her—and for Jewish Americans across the country—these are not isolated nightmares but part of a disturbing surge. The Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) latest annual audit delivers a stark warning: antisemitic incidents hit an unthinkable high for the fourth consecutive year, reaching over 9,300 incidents in 2024 alone—a 5% increase from the previous year and a staggering 344% jump compared to just five years ago.
The headlines tell some of the story, but the numbers convey something more chilling: a nationwide normalization of anti-Jewish hate, manifesting in harrowing daily experiences. According to the ADL report, 2024 saw an average of over 25 antisemitic incidents every day, outpacing previous years in sheer volume and intensity. Most notably, for the first time in the audit’s 45-year history, a majority of these incidents were connected to Israel or Zionism, signaling a complex entanglement of foreign conflict and domestic hate.
Is radical political discourse fueling a more virulent strain of antisemitism, or are deep-rooted prejudices simply finding new expression in today’s fractious environment? The ADL’s president, Jonathan Greenblatt, described the trend as “the new normal we cannot accept,” warning of a “level of threat to Jewish communities not seen in two generations.”
From College Campuses to Main Street: The Personal Toll
A closer look reveals that no corner of America is immune. North Carolina, for example, experienced a 16% jump in antisemitic incidents and a shocking 47% rise in bomb threats. Synagogues reported hateful graffiti, Jewish students faced targeted harassment, and communal gathering places invested in new layers of security. Douglas Greene, director of the Jewish Federation of Greater Charlotte, called this “alarming but not surprising,” noting a climate where Jewish visibility itself feels risky.
Massachusetts exemplifies the wave. The state reported the nation’s fifth-highest incident total—a 213% surge in the New England region since 2022. Harassment made up the bulk of episodes, but vandalism and outright assaults spiked as well, with Orthodox Jews and visible community members often bearing the brunt. ADL New England regional director Robert Trestan highlighted the rising boldness of hate: “We now have extremists openly targeting synagogues, schools, and public gatherings, moving from online threats to real-world intimidation.”
“It’s not just about numbers—each incident leaves a scar, a reminder that anti-Jewish hatred is no relic of the past but a present danger for Americans in every ZIP code.”
Education and safe spaces have never felt more urgent. Harvard law professor Noah Feldman notes that hate “thrives where ignorance is allowed to fester,” and recent spikes coincide with political turbulence surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Still, the ADL carefully distinguishes between political protest and hate—its audit excludes criticism of Israeli policy unless it crosses into demonization, incitement, or classical antisemitic tropes.
On college campuses, the confluence of passionate protest, legitimate advocacy, and hate speech has proven especially combustible. According to the ADL, antisemitic incidents on campuses increased by 84% in 2024, making up nearly one-fifth of all reported cases nationwide. Students recount being targeted during rallies, subjected to classic stereotypes, and at times, isolated by peers. University administrations often struggle to walk the tightrope of free speech while protecting students from hate—a struggle that, if mishandled, can reinforce divisions rather than nurture dialogue. As echoed in a recent Pew Research survey, more than half of American Jews now feel less safe on campus than they did just five years ago.
The Conservative Response: Insufficient Shields for Rising Threats
Given these realities, how have policymakers responded? Much of the conservative approach centers on law enforcement and punitive measures without adequately grappling with the cultural and educational drivers of hate. Proposals float through Congress to increase criminal penalties, but without parallel investments in inclusion, empathy, and nuanced historical education, such efforts ring hollow.
History offers clear warnings about what happens when societies treat rising hate as a mere law-and-order issue. The 1930s saw a flurry of restrictive measures pass in Europe, but as historian Deborah Lipstadt reminds us, “No law alone can uproot hate—it grows in hearts, and hearts are changed only through culture, community, and courageous leadership.”
Progressive leaders and Jewish advocacy organizations urge a bolder, more holistic response—one involving robust anti-bias education, stronger hate crime reporting systems, and alliances with other marginalized groups facing similar threats. Beyond that, it’s critical to defend the distinction between protesting a government’s policies and stoking ancient prejudices. Yet, as the ADL’s methodology shows, broad political movements can sometimes serve as cover for bigotry, and vigilance is required on all fronts. One rally may attract hundreds and produce only a single recorded incident, but the psychological toll on those targeted is impossible to measure solely in tallies and statistics.
What would a true commitment to collective well-being and equality look like in this moment? At the grassroots level, it means communities investing in shared learning and solidarity. At the policy level, it calls for curricula reforms, support for mental health in affected communities, and transparent, well-funded reporting mechanisms for all bias incidents. Above all, it demands leaders who call out hate without equivocation—regardless of whether it comes cloaked in rhetoric of resistance or riding the tides of reactionary politics.
Charting a Brighter Path: Solidarity Over Silence
You don’t have to be Jewish to feel that what’s at stake in this moment goes deeper than any one community. As history has shown, antisemitism often acts as a bellwether—when it rises, so too does intolerance against others. The ADL’s 2024 findings should serve as a clarion call: America’s pluralist ideals are fragile, and defending them means more than wishing for the best. It means standing up, calling out hate, and recommitting—again and again—to the values of inclusion and justice for all.
