JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As Israeli and Palestinian communities continue to be the targets of racial and religious extremism, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) — as well as local leaders in the Jewish community — is talking about how they are responding.
Hatred and acts of antisemitism were already on the rise in the United States months before Hamas attacked Israel, according to crime statistics. But, as the Israel conflict in Gaza shifts to an all-out war, FBI offices remain on high alert, and religious leaders in the Jewish community, have a message for the public.
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FBI Director Christopher Wray said this is about the federal law enforcement’s response.
“We have seen an increase in reported threats to these groups here in the United States and we’re moving quickly to mitigate them. So we’re working closely with our partners in state and local law enforcement.”
Racial and religious extremism is surging in America at a record high for the second year in a row according to the latest data. Recently, a six-year-old Palestinian boy was stabbed to death and his mother was injured near Chicago. And in New York, the physical assault of at least three people based on their religion.
The Jacksonville Office of the FBI released a statement Monday that reads in part, “Jacksonville is working closely with our law enforcement partners to share information and identify and disrupt any threats that may emerge. As always, we take seriously any tips or leads we receive regarding potential threats and investigate them rigorously to determine their credibility.”
“We are a people that have been, for thousands of years, persecuted. And anti-Semitism is not new, we are resilient people,” Mariam Feist, the CEO of the Jacksonville Jewish Federation, said.
Feist said her organization employed its own Director of Security who retired from the FBI. She said for the past nine months they’ve been conducting site assessments and training for their staff. Feist also says they’ve been laying the infrastructure in place for months to respond.
“We want to make sure that our children, our future are safe. We’re concerned about our senior adult living campuses, residential campuses, they’re the most vulnerable,” Feist said. “And we care about our synagogues and our Jewish organizations.”
As demonstrations continue across the country, in support of Palestinians and Israelis, Feist has this message for her community.
“We are encouraging our community to go to work, to live, to pray and to play safely. To look and be vigilant. And that includes, you go to the movies, you look around, it doesn’t necessarily have to be in a Jewish setting, It’s happening, unfortunately, everywhere.”
According to the latest statistics from California State University -- San Bernardino, there were more than 3,300 hate crimes reported in 2022 in 42 cities. That number is up from a little more than 3,000 hate crimes in 2021.