the Los Angeles office along with the Jewish federation cosponsored a conference on Security for Religious Institutions. The Los Angeles City Council and the County Board of Supervisors offered rewards totaling $35,000 for the arrest of those responsible for the firebombing. A rally was held outside the burned-out synagogue attended by 200 Christians and Jews from throughout Southern California to denounce hate. One Christian minister said: "If you touch one synagogue, you touch every Christian church in America." The local media covered the arson, the press conference, the security conference and the rally. As noted, this arson was followed by a series of arsons and attempted arson in other areas of Los Angeles. ADL had held another security conference in Ventura County just prior to an arson there, which gave the temple administrators the necessary tools for dealing with vandalism and for handling the media. Also ADL contacted all the local synagogues and alerted them to possible copy-cat incidents, and the local police to increase patrols at all local synagogues. The arsons and attempted arson were also covered fully by the media. In late April, authorities apprehended someone they suspected of involvement in at least some of the arsons. Conclusion area of personal harassment, which the 1991 Audit figures reflect. This, combined with the pressure associated with a deteriorating American economy during the past year, may well have contributed to the new record- setting levels of anti-Jewish acts. ADL's 1991 Audit findings represent the fifth consecutive year of significant increases in reported anti-Jewish acts. In the vandalism category (where the 1991 total was slightly ahead of that of 1990) the last five years have seen a jump of over one third. Acts of assault, threat and harassment (which soared by 25% in 1991) over the same period have increased by nearly 200%. Yet numbers in themselves cannot tell the whole story. It should be remembered that behind each of the incidents noted here is an individual victim, a family, a community, targeted for intimidation—indeed, a form of terrorism. The lasting pain of scars, emo- tional as well as physical, inflicted by crimes of hate must not be underestimated. One of the major factors noted in recent years showed continued signs of increase in 1991— the rise of anti-Jewish incidents reported on college campuses. While the rate of increase slowed in 1991, these acts have doubled over the past 4 years. At the same time, another important factor again declined—namely, anti-Semitic acts by neo-Nazi Skinheads. To be sure, the violent crimes of such gangs remain a matter of serious concern; law enforcement agencies, both local and federal, have paid greater attention to this problem in recent years. The nationwide increase in anti-Semitic acts demands an ever more forceful response through those means available to official authorities and community leaders in a democratic society: firm enforcement of appropriate laws, regular and creative educational programming against prejudice, and enhanced public awareness of the nature and dimension of the hate crime phenom- enon. ADLs active monitoring efforts, its "A ADL Audit of Anti-Semitic Episodes Vandalism, Harassments, Threats and Assaults Year by Year National Totals Between the 15th of May and the end of July, Orthodox Jewish congregants of two Boca Raton synagogues were the victims of vandalism, smoke bombs, drive-by shootings, BB gun shootings, verbal assaults and harassment. The Boca Raton Criminal Intelligence officers believe that all the episodes were related and possibly may be connected to a Skinhead presence in the general area. A Resurgence of Politically-Related Incidents There were 52 anti-Semitic incidents linked by their perpetrators to the Persian Gulf war committed in 14 states across the country from the start of Operation Desert Storm on January 16 through February 14. Another 28 such incidents were reported over the next few months, for a total of 80. Hate mailings and threats included swastikas and state- ments such as "Death to Jews, " "All Jews will burn and die in hell," and "Keep checking for those letter bombs." It should be noted that such politically related acts of anti-Jewish animus cannot be considered mere expressions of political criticism. Rather, the violence and bigotry of the incidents cited place them beyond the bounds of legitimate debate. And while the Gulf crisis may be over, the danger of renewed political anti-Semitism in a presidential election year overcast with economic dark clouds will require continuing vigilance. Conferences on Security and Bias Crime In cooperation with law enforcement authorities, educational and other religious and ethnic organizations, ADL offices on both the local and national levels have carried out programs of public education, emphasiz- ing the need for effective security at houses of worship and other community-based institutions. In November, ADL in cooperation with the League for Human Rights of B'nai B'rith in Canada, convened the first comprehensive "Conference on Anti-Semitism Around the World." It brought together scholars, journalists, religious and community leaders from the U.S., Canada, Israel, South America, the former U.S.S.R., Germany, Poland, and Romania to assess the phenomenon of anti- Semitism in a rapidly changing world. The diverse reports and discussions illustrated that there are common anti-Semitic threads as well as distinctive differences in countries around the world. Around the U.S. throughout 1991, ADL- sponsored security and bias-crime conferences on anti-Semitism, security, hate crimes training and extremists have brought together all community elements—institu- tional leaders, clergy, educators, parents and law enforcement officials—to discuss bias- oriented attacks, and to grapple with the how- to's of stronger security measures. The conferences have also focused on the very difficult questions having to do with the whys of anti-Semitism and racism. ADL—both regionally and nationally—participated in various grass roots anti-bias activities such as the Northwest Coalition against Malicious Harassment, Inc. and the Stockton (New Jersey) State College Human Relations Coalition. Boca Raton, Florida ADL worked with local police to get them to respond and to take the incidents seriously and to be aware of and sensitive to the anti- Semitism. ADL consulted with the rabbis and synagogue leadership and security guards were employed. ADL also was able to get regular security patrols by the police and the private Boca Del Mar Development security increased for the protection of the rabbis and congregants. Several of the incidents were covered in the local press. themselves against vandalism and other forms of bias crimes, and to respond effectively should they occur. Major elements of this broad-ranging program are detailed here. 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1983 1 9 ,6 1987 1988 1990 1991 Key: U Vandalisms ❑ Harassment. Threats and Assaults In 1991, the most serious forms of anti- Semitic vandalism—bombings, arson, and cemetery desecrations—continued to rise even beyond the high level of 1990. Such serious types of violence had also risen sharply in 1988 and 1989. In addition, 1991 saw a significant rise in direct physical assaults against Jews; the year's total of 60 doubled that of 1990. Another factor that had virtually disappeared in 1989 after leaping to prominence in 1988—i.e., anti-Semitic acts linked by their perpetrators to events in the Middle East— again came to wide attention in 1990. Then, in 1991, the Persian Gulf War brought with it a significant number of anti-Semitic acts, largely in the form of hate mail to Jewish organizations, blaming them and the Jewish community for the war or making other hostile statements. Such politically-related anti-Semitism calls for especially intensive monitoring— especially in the election year of 1992, with some candidates ready to scapegoat the Jewish community or engage in Israel-bashing. Many observers have noted the possible correlation between, on the one hand, a perceived decline in civility, a coarsening of public expression and popular culture, in American society and, on the other, the dramatic rise in bias crime, particularly in the World of Difference" project and its other counteraction and educational programs— including the publication of this Audit report—are geared toward those goals. Despite the year's troubling statistics, the overall picture retains some positive features. Forty-six states and the District of Columbia now have statutes dealing with hate crimes, many patterned after ADL model legislation. Numerous states and localities are working to improve communication between community groups and law enforcement authorities, while such officials, increasingly sensitized, are developing better reporting and investiga- tive procedures on bias crimes. The new federal Hate Crime Statistics Act has begun operation. Today, public officials, educational administrators and community leaders are responding more frequently to hate-motivated incidents with sympathy and solidarity toward victims, and a determination to reject and overcome the affront to decency and threat to pluralism presented by acts of gross or violent prejudice. ADL's Counteraction Program During 1991, ADL regional offices have organized, co-sponsored or participated in more than 40 such meetings, covering the following states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maine (Maine saw its first- ever hate crimes conference held in Portland during May), Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington, D.C. In addition to involvement in these security conferences, ADL staff members have been invited to brief law enforcement officials, at the local, state and federal levels on hate groups, bias crime legislation and other security-related topics throughout the year. Dick Lobenthal (Detroit regional office) lectured on extremist groups at the Midwest Gang Investigators Association annual conference. By coordinating police and local institutional leadership, ADL seminars, conferences and training have established greater community awareness of practical bias-crime prevention measures, stronger support among cooperat- ing agencies and heightened sensitivity by public officials for the citizens they serve. They have also helped community members to understand how important it is to report bias crimes whenever they occur. Hate Crimes Statistics Act ADL has developed and supported a combination of preventive and counteraction measures over the past twelve years to enable the Jewish and other communities to protect As part of its overall hate crime counteraction effort, ADL has played a leading role in the implementation of the federal Hate Crime