Jews Targeted Significantly More Than Muslims Over the Past Year, FBI Data Show

Hate crime data released by the Federal Bureau of Investigation this week shows that individuals committed a disproportionately greater number of hate crimes against Jews than Muslims in the past year.

The FBI reported 1,951 anti-Jewish hate crimes between January 2023 and December 2023, and 266 anti-Muslim or anti-Islamic hate crimes. The new data follows a rise in anti-Semitic rhetoric and attacks after Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel, according to the American Jewish Coalition. Since that attack, many Jewish Americans have reported attacks based on their religion, and anti-Jewish protestors have demonstrated on college campuses across the nation.

In the aftermath of the Oct. 7 attack, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre suggested that the White House had not seen “any credible threats” of anti-Semitism as she discussed whether the administration was worried about increases — then proceeded to discuss how “Muslims and those perceived to be Muslim have endured a disproportionate number of hate-fueled attacks.”

Jean-Pierre later said that she misheard the question, and emphasized the White House’s stance against anti-Semitism. The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment for this story.

Anti-Jewish hate crimes between January 2023 and December 2023 were made up of 51% of destruction, damage, or vandalism of property, 34% of intimidation, and 6% of simple assault, while 61% of the hate crimes were against individuals, 16% were against businesses, 12% against the government, 4% against religious organizations, and 6% against “other.” The FBI does not know what race 50% of the offenders are, but 36% of the offenders are white and 9% are black or African American.

Anti-Muslim hate crimes were made up of 48% of intimidation, 20% of simple assault, 18% of destruction, damage, or vandalism of property, and 8% of aggravated assault, according to the FBI statistics. The crime data shows that 54% of those offenders were white, 19% were black or African American, and 19% were of an unknown race. These anti-Muslim hate crimes were largely (90%) committed against individuals.

Between January 2022 and December 2022, the FBI recorded 1,257 anti-Jewish hate crimes, and 176 anti-Muslim hate crimes.

Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO of the American Defamation League, said that this year’s numbers are “unfortunately entirely consistent” with the organization’s tracking and the Jewish community’s experience, noting that the Jewish community “is still suffering from the sharp rise in antisemitism following Hamas’s Oct. 7 massacre in Israel.”

The American Jewish Committee’s Ted Deutch called the rise in anti-Semitic violence “earth-shattering.”

“The worst part of this new reality is that young Jews are increasingly on the receiving end of this rise in antisemitic hate, according to AJC’s State of Antisemitism in America 2023 Report,” he said in a statement. “It’s unacceptable that in America of all places there are nearly five antisemitic hate crimes on average per day.”