Antisemitism becomes ‘persistent reality’ for Jewish Americans in San Diego, report finds

House of Israel in Balboa Park Photo via Jewish Federation of San Diego Experiencing antisemitism has become a persistent reality for American Jewish communities as the number of antisemitic incidents in the San Diego region nearly quadrupled over the last five years a audit by the Anti-Defamation League determined In the years ADL has measured antisemitic behavior in the U S this is the first time harassment vandalism and assault directly referencing Israel made up more than half the total of recorded antisemitic incidents A key reason is the widespread opposition to Israel s military response in Gaza after the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct Heidi Gantwerk chief executive officer and president of the Jewish Federation noted the audit is a wake-up call for Jewish and non-Jewish communities in San Diego It is legitimate to criticize the regime of any country but the extreme nature of the criticism and outright hatred directed at Israel is without question a form of antisemitism Gantwerk reported Gantwerk visited the Majdanek concentration camp in Lubin Poland last week to commemorate the th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz as a part of the March of the Living mission Majdanek was one of the largest Nazi concentration camps during World War II holding around people in its four years of existence Gantwerk reported the descriptions of Jewish restoration and perception in s Europe echoed what she sees in chosen communities nowadays The Jewish Federation CEO reported the organization s posts on social media regularly garner comments with references to gas chambers threats and overtly antisemitic hate speech Antisemitic incidents according to the audit are defined as a circumstance indicating anti-Jewish hostility by a perpetrator or victimization due to a person s or group s Jewish identity In the last five years antisemitic incidents in the county rose from in to in Antisemitic incidents recorded by ADL in San Diego last year include total incidents of antisemitism up from in incidents of harassment up from in incidents of vandalism up from in incidents of assault up increase from in incidents on college campuses up from in incidents at K schools down from in San Diego had the third highest number of antisemitic incidents in California in behind Los Angeles and San Francisco according to ADL Fabienne Perlov the regional director of ADL San Diego commented the numbers are deeply disturbing We need to stay away from extremist ideologies and create space for better understanding of our conditions Perlov declared Perlov pointed to the increasing amount antisemitic behavior on college campuses in the region as a component of the overall increase More than anti-Israel rallies were stated to ADL in and Perlov explained around half of them contained antisemitic behavior The ADL statement mentioned it is careful to not conflate general criticism of Israel or anti-Israel activism with antisemitism The ADL also states on its website that the vilification and negation of Zionism the movement for Jewish self-determination and statehood is antisemitic ADL believes that one can advocate for the Palestinian people and their right to self-determination while also respecting the Jewish right to self-determination the website stated Perlov supported that distinction She mentioned the chant commonly heard at rallies From the river to the sea Palestine will be free was recorded as an antisemitic situation whereas Free Palestine was not UC San Diego was one of universities targeted by the Department of Instruction in an examination for antisemitic discrimination and harassment The review coincided with other disciplinary moves by President Donald Trump s administration against universities it considered too lax in combating antisemitism including the deportation of a few pro-Palestinian campus activists Around international students at UCSD and San Diego State University have had their visas revoked by the Trump administration in the last month although around half of them were in recent months reinstated Antisemitism is not a Jewish challenge it is a societal dilemma and the time to act is now Perlov explained There were a total of antisemitic incidents nationwide last year with of incidents occurring in California Incidents targeting Jewish institutions decreased in the U S last year while such incidents increased by in California including a surge in Orange County synagogue bomb threats in early The majority of incidents included in the ADL audit were shared to the organization directly by Jewish casualties the audit stated Other event information comes from law enforcement agencies and Jewish organizations that partner with ADL including both criminal and non-criminal acts of harassment vandalism and assault