MIAMI _ The number of anti-Semitic attacks in Florida rose by 20% in 2019 over the previous year, according to the Anti-Defamation League's annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents. And the three reported assaults that happened in Florida were all in Miami-Dade.
One of the attacks included a 68-year-old man who was shot six times as he sat on a bench outside a Northeast Miami-Dade synagogue waiting to pray. He survived the shooting.
In total, there were 91 incidents in Florida _ which includes vandalism and harassment _ up from the 76 incidents in 2018, according to the ADL report, released Tuesday.
The number mirrors what the organization saw nationwide _ a dramatic increase in overall anti-Semitic attacks, especially violent assaults. According to the ADL, there were more than 2,100 incidents nationwide in 2019, the highest number since the organization began tracking them in 1979, and a 12% increase over 2018. There was a 56% increase in assaults, according to the report.
The anti-Semitic attacks included a Chabad synagogue in Poway, California; a grocery store in Jersey City, New Jersey; and at a rabbi's home in Monsey, New York. There was also a spree of violent assaults in Brooklyn.
The report indicates that New York had the most assaults, with 25 in Brooklyn alone.
Every year, the ADL's Center on Extremism compiles the data to see where the attacks are happening and whether they are rising.
"The stark number of anti-Semitic incidents compared to the prior year demonstrates that we must remain ever-vigilant in our fight against antisemitism and all forms of bigotry," said Sheri Zvi, ADL Florida regional director in a news release. "Anti-Semitism must be recognized as a formidable challenge for our entire society. We encourage anyone who witnesses or is victim to an antisemitic incident to report it to ADL."
This year, Florida ranked sixth in the number of incidents. The top five states were: New York, New Jersey, California, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania.
In the three assaults reported in Miami-Dade County, the July shooting in front of Young Israel of Greater Miami is the only one still pending in court. Cartlints St. Louis is in jail awaiting charges including murder. He has an enhanced charge of a hate crime, which could increase the penalty.
Another reported incident involved a homeless man claiming to be the 'real son of God' making anti-Semitic remarks and threatening to kill Jews. Larry Greene was charged with a hate crime for the October incident, but was later acquitted.
The third incident involved a jogger in Bal Harbour being arrested on charges of spitting on an elderly Jewish couple and threatening to sexually assault another group of Jews while running in March. Daniel Valerivich Starikov, who was charged with a hate crime, took a plea deal and is serving five years probation, records show.
While the three assaults happened in Miami-Dade, there were also an additional 21 incidents of vandalism, slurs or other similar attacks in the county. There were 10 incidents in Broward and 16 in Palm Beach.
Of the 91 incidents in Florida, 27 of them included using a swastika. Five cases involved a white supremacist group using fliers to target Jewish institutions on college campuses. And there were 13 cases that involved students in middle school or high schools.
Harassment and vandalism incidents in Florida tracked by the ADL include:
_ The words "Heil Hitler" were written on the exterior of an Aventura home.
_ A bulletin board at a condominium complex in Sunrise was defaced with swastikas and the messages "Die Jews" and "Kill Jews."
_ A swastika and SS lightning bolts were spray-painted on the ground of a condominium parking garage in Tampa.
_ A Jewish organization in Palm Beach County received a threatening and violent anti-Semitic email to their general inbox.
_ Students at a public Weston middle school circulated a petition to classmates via WhatsApp to "burn all Jews (again)".
_ Someone placed a sign in the front yard of a Haines City home that said "Happy 4th of JEW=LIE."
_ Someone posted reviews with anti-Semitic language for a Jacksonville law firm.
_ A group of youth hockey players raised their arms and said 'Heil Hitler' in front of a group of Jewish players and asked if anyone wanted to join the Nazi party.
_ Someone hacked the Instagram account of a Boca Raton company and and sent anti-Semitic images to clients.
