New ADL Report Identifies White Supremacy as the Leading Threat to Jewish Americans in 2022

WASHINGTON – This morning, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released its 2022 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents.

In response to the ADL report, JDCA CEO Halie Soifer said the following:

“The ADL’s 2022 annual report on antisemitism clearly shows that white supremacy is the greatest threat to the safety and security of Jewish Americans. Right-wing extremism is a grave and growing danger to our community and democracy, and we are deeply concerned that such extremism has been tolerated, embraced, and normalized by the Republican Party.

“In the 2022 midterm elections, a record number of extremist candidates ran for office: according to a report from the ADL last year, at least 119 ran in primaries, and roughly 25% won their election. One hundred percent of these extremists ran for office as Republicans, demonstrating that right-wing extremism has found a political home within the Republican Party.

“We remain deeply concerned about the Jewish American community’s safety and security. The findings in this report reflect what we saw on January 6th: the dangers of the convergence of right-wing extremism and hate, which is why we are committed to electing Democrats up and down the ballot.”

ADL’s findings include:

• A 36% increase in antisemitic incidents nationwide since 2021. This makes the results from 2022 “the highest number on record since ADL began tracking antisemitic incidents in 1979.” Broken down by month, the greatest spike occurred in November 2022.
• The greatest increase stems from white supremacist activity, of which the ADL tracked 852 incidents nationwide. One specific group, the Goyim Defense League (GDL), whose goal is to “expel Jews from America,” was alone responsible for a large share of the increase.
• A direct correlation between Kanye “Ye” West’s widely publicized antisemitic statements and incidents threatening Jews nationwide. From October 11 to December 31, the ADL tracked 59 incidents that “directly referenced Ye, including 44 cases of harassment, 13 cases of vandalism and two cases of assault.” Amidst this nationwide threat to Jewish Americans that Ye incited, Donald Trump, the frontrunner for the GOP 2024 presidential nomination, invited him to Mar-A-Lago for a private dinner with prominent Neo-Nazi Nick Fuentes. In December, JDCA said that this dinner “epitomizes the fact that Donald Trump legitimizes, emboldens, and gives a platform to those who espouse hate.”

To speak with a JDCA spokesperson, please contact [email protected].

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