2019 Anti-Semitic Crimes Increased 25% in NY City

The upsurge in anti-Semitic crimes in New York City was addressed days ago at a press conference at the Police Academy in Queens. The alarming rise in hate crimes across the five boroughs, shot up 20 percent in 2019 and was topped by a 26% spike in anti-Semitic incidents alone. There were 234 anti-Semitic crimes reported for the year compared to 186 in 2018, officials said. The city has been shaken in the past month by a spate of anti-Semitic attacks, including one in Brooklyn on 27 Dec. 2019 that was allegedly committed by Tiffany Harris, who was then released without bail thanks to the state’s new criminal-justice reforms. Earlier this month, thousands of people, some covered in Israeli flags and others singing Hebrew songs, poured into Lower Manhattan in a show of solidarity for New York's Jewish community in the wake of a spate of anti-Semitic attacks in the region. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo joined the crowd and announced $45 million in additional state funding to increase security around houses of worships, schools and other religious institutions, days after a man wielding a machete stormed into a rabbi's home in Monsey, New York, sending five people to the hospital. The incident that took place on 28 Dec. 2019 followed an early December shooting rampage at a kosher supermarket in Jersey City. The assault left three civilians, one police officer, and the two shooters dead after an hours-long gun battle. Both Cuomo and NY City Mayor Bill de Blasio have increased police patrols in Brooklyn neighborhoods with large Orthodox Jewish communities. (VFI News) 

Intercede for the safety of the NY Jewish community against all forms of anti-Semitism, whether it comes from individuals or groups. Pray for a halt to the spread of lies and prejudices that fuel anti-Semitism.  Intercede also against media bias where the supposed “crimes” of Israel are exaggerated, over-reported, and distorted. Anti- Israel bias greatly energizes anti-Semitism.