Antisemitism is Festering in Michigan

There has been a significant increase in reported instances of antisemitism in Michigan since the outbreak of violence between Israel and Hamas, as members of Detroit's Jewish community remain anxious about a fresh spate of targeted attacks.

The regional Anti-Defamation League (ADL) office in Michigan told Newsweek that between October 7—when Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants launched a surprise attack into Israel—and October 23, there were 44 reported incidents of antisemitism in the state.

By comparison, in the same period last year, it was notified of 12 incidents—which it said was "unusually high" and came in the aftermath of rapper Kanye West, who now goes by the name Ye, posting on October 8, 2022: "I'm going death [sic] con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE." He has since deleted the post.

Carolyn Normandin, the Michigan ADL's regional director, told Newsweek that in the following two days, to October 25, there had been a further 11 reported incidents in the state, suggesting instances of antisemitism in Michigan could be increasing in frequency as the conflict in the Middle East continues.

"There is no doubt we've seen spikes in incidents of antisemitism and I know community members are tense and raw with emotion," she said.

Nationwide, between October 7-18, the ADL, an antisemitism watchdog, has recorded nearly 200 antisemitic incidents, about half of which it said were linked to Israel.

Newsweek approached the Detroit Police Department and the Dearborn Police Department via email for comment and hate crime statistics for the Metropolitan area on Monday. Detroit's police force acknowledged the request but did not respond by the time of publication.

In Detroit, Michigan's largest city, which has America's 14th-largest Jewish population, the Jewish community has been bracing for a wave of antisemitic sentiment in light of current events, and has already been rocked by the slaying of one of its faith leaders, while one of the metropolis's representatives, Rashida Tlaib, has come under fire for her public comments on the conflict.

Samantha Woll, 40, who led the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue, was found stabbed multiple times early Saturday morning outside of her home in Detroit's Lafayette Park neighborhood, according to local media reports.

The Detroit Police Department said on Sunday that it had so far found no evidence to suggest the crime was motivated by antisemitism, and that an investigation into Woll's death was ongoing. Her slaying has sparked an outpouring of grief from the local community.

Woll's death also led to a backlash against Tlaib, who is of Palestinian descent and has long criticized the actions of the Israeli government. Tlaib has recently courted controversy after appearing to hint she believed that an Israeli air strike was responsible for a deadly blast at a hospital in Gaza—a claim by Hamas that has been contested by Israel and the U.S.

Tlaib wrote a tribute to Woll in which she described the faith leader as "my friend," adding: "I have no words. She always had a sweet smile to offer and the warmest eyes to greet you. Our community is devastated and we are shocked."

As Hamas called for a global "Day of Jihad" on October 13, in response to Israeli air strikes on Gaza, the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit acknowledged "the understandable anxiety about the safety and security of our community," but following conversations with law enforcement said there was "no specific or credible threat" in the city at the time.

Following Woll's death, it said that there were "no known threats to the community" as of Sunday, but that it was "eager to better understand the circumstances of Samantha's death."

"I fear that the wars against Hamas and antisemitism will not end soon," Rabbi Aaron Starr, who leads the Shaarey Zedek Congregation in Detroit's Southfield suburb, wrote on Friday. "So when we feel the inevitable sadness, anger, and anxiety that result from our sacred obligation to pursue justice and to bring compassion, we must seek and offer the comfort of community and of friendship."

"Jews are people who are targeted in society," said Rabbi Mendel Polter. "Unfortunately, we've seen a rise in the past few years. And I think that you know it's something that we should just take precautions about and not just that Jews should be aware that antisemitism exists but the non-Jewish community should also be aware."

Prior to the latest bout of violence between Israel and Hamas, in late April, the Woodward Avenue synagogue in the Royal Oak suburb of Detroit, as well as a pram outside a nearby Jewish family's home, were daubed with swastikas, local news outlet Fox 2 reported at the time. A woman was charged by police over the incident a few days later, multiple local outlets reported.

According to FBI data, in 2022, there were 2,044 religion-oriented hate crimes in the U.S. nationwide, of which 1,124 were directed at Jews—around 55 percent of the total. By comparison, there were 158 anti-Muslim hate crimes.

In Michigan in the same period, of 52 religious-based hate crimes recorded by police in the state, 33 were against Jews—around 64 percent—while nine were against Muslims. In Detroit, however, just two religious hate crimes were recorded, neither of which were against Jews, while in its Dearborn suburb, home to America's largest Muslim population, there were three anti-Islamic hate crimes.

According to the ADL, 2022 was the worst year for incidents of anti-Jewish hate since its records began in 1979, with 3,967 incidents nationwide—the third consecutive annual rise in a row.

Michigan ranked ninth among the states with the highest totals, with 111 antisemitic incidents recorded.

In November last year, police in West Bloomfield, a suburb of Detroit, told The Detroit News they were investigating two threatening calls made to the Frankel Jewish Academy there, which led to the temporary evacuation of the school.