Physical attacks on Jews grow: Pro-Israel college professor under siege
The latest numbers on antisemitism are in, and they provide a mixed bag of both encouragement and concern.
That’s one of the big takeaways from the latest antisemitism report from the Anti-Defamation League. On one hand, overall antisemitic incidents declined substantially in 2025 after exploding in the aftermath of the October 7 Hamas terror attacks and the anti-Israel protest movement that followed. On the other hand, violent attacks against Jews actually hit a record high.
According to the ADL’s newly released 2025 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, the organization tracked 6,274 antisemitic incidents across the United States last year. That’s down 33% from the staggering 9,354 incidents recorded in 2024. Still, the number remains roughly five times higher than what America saw a decade ago.
However, perhaps what is most sobering of all is that physical assaults have increased again. The ADL says those sorts of antisemitic incidents rose from 196 incidents in 2024 to 203 in 2025, the highest level ever recorded by the organization. Meanwhile, harassment incidents dropped 39% to 4,003 cases, while vandalism declined 21% to 2,068 incidents.
Even with those decreases, the volume remains historically high. In practical terms, the ADL says there were still an average of 17 antisemitic incidents every single day in America during 2025. By comparison, between 2020 and 2022, the average was closer to eight incidents per day.
So yes, the temperature may have cooled a bit from the chaos of 2024. But the country is still operating at a much higher level of antisemitic activity than before the Israel-Hamas war changed the political and cultural atmosphere nationwide.
One of the sharpest declines came on college campuses. The ADL recorded a 66% drop in antisemitic incidents at colleges and universities, falling from 1,694 incidents in 2024 to 583 in 2025. The organization points directly to the collapse of the anti-Israel encampment movement as a major reason why.
In addition, the ADL says antisemitic incidents connected to anti-Israel protests on campuses dropped by 83% in 2025 compared to the previous year. Assaults on campuses fell 72%, while vandalism dropped 51%.
“The anti-Israel protests that swept campuses in 2024 coincided with, and sometimes directly drove, antisemitic property destruction and physical violence,” the report noted. “Efforts to address this activity appear to have had a meaningful impact.”
The report also highlighted a major decrease in bomb threats and swatting incidents against Jewish institutions. Incidents at Jewish institutions dropped 34% overall, falling from 1,702 to 1,129. Bomb threats against Jewish institutions plunged dramatically, from 996 in 2023 and 627 in 2024, down to just 59 in 2025.
Of course, while the overall statistics moved downward, many Jewish Americans say the atmosphere on campuses and inside institutions still feels deeply hostile. That’s where people like Jeffrey Lax come in.
Lax, a professor at the City University of New York and a vocal pro-Israel advocate, says he has become a lightning rod on his campus because of his outspoken support for Israel and his criticism of radical activism inside academia.
“I’m definitely a polarizing figure,” Lax told ALL ISRAEL NEWS. “Half the people on my campus hate me and half really love me. And that’s okay, because I think it’s the right people who love me.”
Lax said the hostility has become deeply personal. “You walked into my office today and saw the top letter left on my desk,” he said. “It was a hate letter from an antisemitic person. Seven-point font, one page, hand-addressed to me. Creepy letter. And I get a lot of that stuff.”
He described an atmosphere where anti-Israel activism, in his view, has evolved into something much broader and more ideological. “We had a pro-Hamas rally on our campus, and I flew the American flag in protest because it really was anti-American,” Lax explained. “They were chanting things like ‘Death to America.’ People who think it’s only about Jews are missing the bigger picture.”
Lax argued the movement is not just targeting Israel or Jews, but Western culture more broadly. “They’re trying to destroy American culture, Western culture, and come after Christians as well,” he said. “There are no fans of either one of us.”
His criticism extends directly toward faculty activism and union politics inside higher education. “The faculty here are largely Marxist. The union is entirely Marxist,” he said.
Lax said he resigned from his faculty union because he believed its ideology had crossed into outright discrimination. “They call each other ‘comrade’ at union meetings,” he said. “And it’s not a joke. They’re serious.”
He also pointed to allegations involving a faculty organization known as the Progressive Faculty Caucus. According to Lax, Orthodox Jews and Zionists were effectively excluded from participation.
“They had a rule that they would not allow Zionists or Orthodox Jews into their group,” he said. “Six Zionist or Orthodox Jews were turned down from joining the group, and nobody else was ever turned down.”
Whether Americans agree with Lax’s politics or not, his story helps explain why the ADL numbers remain so alarming to many Jewish Americans even amid statistical declines.
David Brody is a senior contributor for ALL ISRAEL NEWS. He is a 38-year Emmy Award veteran of the television industry and continues to serve as Chief Political Analyst for CBN News/The 700 Club, a role he has held for 23 years. David is the author of two books including, “The Faith of Donald Trump” and has been cited as one of the top 100 influential evangelicals in America by Newsweek Magazine. He’s also been listed as one of the country’s top 15 political power players in the media by Adweek Magazine.
