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Terrifying Times and Bright Spots in the Past Year
Dear Friends,
As we get ready to welcome 2024, I think we can all agree that 2023 has been a long year. A really long year. So this is a long article; but it’s important to recognize the work that the ADL team — our staff in offices across the country and in Israel alongside our dedicated supporters like you — has done this year in the face of so many challenges.
2023 started off relatively quietly, especially when you consider that two years ago, January saw violent extremists storm our nation’s Capitol and one year ago, a terrifying hostage crisis at Congregation Beth El in Colleyville, TX. In mid-January, the ADL Center for Antisemitism Research released a comprehensive survey of antisemitic attitudes
that found that the number of people in the U.S. who harbored extensive prejudice against Jews had hit the highest level in decades. Among the findings: 20 percent said Jews have “too much power” in the United States and 18 percent said they are uncomfortable spending time with a pro-Israel person. Younger adults held more negative sentiment toward Israel and its supporters. That last information is particularly interesting given the campus turmoil Jews and Zionists now face.
In February, the ADL Center on Extremism dug into how extremist groups have used internet crowdfunding to raise millions of dollars. We also began what has been a yearlong push to address antisemitism in the office by launching our Antisemitism 101 for the Workplace
module. By the year’s end, many major companies in the U.S. had taken some form of action against antisemitism alongside ADL. Midmonth, the shooting of two Los Angeles Jews on their way home from services in less than 24 hours alarmed the city. ADL’s LA regional office and Center on Extremism supported law enforcement and ensured that the Jewish community felt solidarity from the city’s leadership. …
CLICK HERE to read the rest of the 2023 Year in Review, from advancements in the fight against antisemitism to the devastating 10/7 attack in Israel and the global aftermath.
| Sincerely, |
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| Jonathan Greenblatt |
| CEO and National Director |
| ADL |
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Graphic Violence Online:
Since Oct. 7, ADL has been monitoring and addressing spikes in overt antisemitic and Islamophobic hatred online. One issue we’re paying close attention to is how platforms are handling graphic violence, which can be traumatic to viewers and can stoke divisiveness. However, in certain contexts, it serves as a means to expose atrocities. The ADL Center for Technology and Society has been calling for stronger rapid response mechanisms on tech platforms, since the real-world implications for this content are so severe and have the ability to incite violence and endanger others.
→ Read the new report.
Not On My Campus:
There have been too few consequences for antisemitism on college campuses — and that must change. ADL is putting universities on notice that we expect big changes in 2024. There must be Zero Tolerance for Antisemitism on campus. Universities and colleges must live up to their moral and legal obligations to provide safe learning environments for their communities. And, there must be real, measurable, and hopefully public consequences for harassment, intimidation and other conduct that violates student and faculty codes of conduct. Before students return to campus in early 2024, universities must strengthen and enforce codes of conduct to protect the safety of their Jewish
communities. ADL’s Jonathan Greenblatt wrote an open letter to campus presidents with our Not On My Campus recommendations.
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| Cartoon appearing in Bahrain on 11/8/23. |
The Impact of Hate-Filled Cartoons:
In the aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas massacre and Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, political cartoonists in the Arab press have doubled down on the use of hateful antisemitic conspiracy theories and tropes including the claim that Jews control U.S. politics, comparisons of Israel and Israeli leaders to Hitler, and frequent references to the blood libel. ADL will be sharing copies of the report with members of Congress, the Biden Administration and officials in the U.S. State Department.
→ Read “Antisemitism in Arab Cartoons During the Israel-Hamas War” to see examples of this blatant antisemitism.
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Ask Your University or College President: Is calling for the genocide of Jews a violation of your school’s policies? As dangerous levels of antisemitism are surging on college campuses, does your school allow for students to call for the genocide of Jews? This is not a question of free speech, but rather a question of whether genocidal calls on campus will be met with consequences. Join ADL in pushing to ensure that Jewish students and faculty know that they’re protected against this threatening behavior.
Click here to speak out now.
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The @ADL_tracker feed of news and developments in antisemitism activities.
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During this unprecedented moment since 10/7, with surging antisemitism, your voice is critical. It is more important than ever to come together and send the message that hate cannot win.
Be in the room at the world’s largest summit on antisemitism and hate to connect and engage on the most critical challenges facing our communities today. Come away empowered with the tools to continue to fight antisemitism and hate in your communities. Never Is Now general programming is on March 6-7, 2024. Save on registration at neverisnow.org through Jan. 5.
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