From the safety of the Bay Area, we have watched from afar as anti-Semitic speech and violence have swept across Europe. Closer to home, we’ve seen emboldened neo-Nazi thugs parading in other American cities. Yet because we live in this tolerant region, we have felt immune to hate.
We were wrong.
As this week’s special report reveals, Bay Area public schools have experienced a spike in anti-Jewish vandalism, graffiti and bullying. In some schools, the problem is ongoing.
In all, J. surveyed public records from 40 school districts. We found 29 anti-Semitic incidents reported at 25 schools so far in 2017, slightly more than the total reported in all of 2016. The current figures parallel the data from California as a whole, where anti-Semitic incidents reported at K-12 public schools have doubled since November.
Even one such act is too many. This is a deeply disturbing situation that must be shared with the community and, more important, must be addressed.
One local incident took the shape of racist text messages sent anonymously to a Jewish student. In other cases, swastikas were scrawled on school property. In an Alameda elementary school, a Jewish fourth-grader was the target of what was determined to be an anti-Semitic death threat.
Thankfully, administrators at these schools have taken the incidents seriously. Responses have ranged from disciplinary action against the perpetrators, to reaching out to the Anti-Defamation League for guidance and training.
We urge readers to look at our interactive map, which not only shows how widespread the problem has become, but details each incident at every school. It’s a sobering picture.
So how do we interpret the data and make sense of it? Clearly our report shatters the myth that we live in a blue cocoon of love and tolerance. It shows that decades of teaching children the lessons of the Holocaust may not have been as effective as desired. And, most depressingly, it shows that the virus of anti-Semitism is still with us, as hard as ever to eradicate.
But we do not give up. Our community will never stop speaking out against anti-Semitic hatred, wherever it rears its head. Agencies such as the ADL and the Jewish Community Relations Council, which have made the fight against anti-Semitism a core mission, will continue to clamor, organize, collaborate and fight.
Information is power. Disheartening as this report may be, we now know better what our children face, and we can respond accordingly.
“Our community will never stop speaking out against anti-Semitic hatred”
…yes, and all the while continuing to champion the mass importation of people from the most antisemitic countries on the planet, such as Syria. Sounds like quite a plan!
How to interpret? Easy. You know well that anti Semitism is fueled by influx of students/parents from anti Semitic countries. Have courage to admit it. And, please, don’t talk about this useless ADL. Or toothless JCRC
The two previous commenters are both wrong and promoting attitudes which will be destructive to the American Jewish community. Unfortunately, the editorial does not contextualize the increase in anti-Semitic incidents. Jews are by no means the only minority group targeted–in my community, every minority has seen an increase in these incidents. They are not from immigrant communities; they are from the right–those people who, in light of the current administration, feel empowered to act on previously unacceptable attitudes.
The strongest and best response is to join forces with other minorities. But that would mean recognizing that we don’t have to be isolated, that alongside these anti-Semitic incidents, American Jews are largely doing well and are well-respected (polls are VERY clear on this). Yes, maintaining a “both-and” attitude is difficult, but scapegoating and retreating behind walls is self-destructive.
“From the right”, huh? So far, we know that the wave of bomb threats earlier this year came from one black community organizer/social justice warrier, and one Israeli teen hacker. As for “anti-Muslim” incidents, almost every one unravels as a hoax. Here’s a handy list for you: http://www.fakehatecrimes.org
On the other hand, our Muslim brethren have been piling up real corpses: the Christmas party massacre in San Bernardino, the gay bar massacre in Orlando…
Team up with other minorities, you say? No, we Jews have a lot more in common with legacy Americans, than with Afghani goatherds and it’s high time you realized that.