ADL says Muslims, Jews, members of LGBTQ community targeted most in online harassment
New survey by antisemitism watchdog finds 56% of Americans experience online hate; ‘the hate we’re seeing online, doesn’t stay online – it causes real harm,’ says chief
More than half of Americans experience online hate and harassment in their lifetimes and numbers are rising, according to a new report from the Anti-Defamation League, amid a surge in antisemitic incidents in the United States and around the world.
The antisemitism watchdog’s sixth annual survey on online harassment found that among adults, the groups most affected by the issue were LGBTQ+ (49%) Muslims (47%) and Jews (34%).
“The hate we’re seeing online, doesn’t stay online — it causes real harm and violence in people’s lives. It’s high time everyone stepped up to keep communities and marginalized groups safe from hate and harassment,” said ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt.
“Despite many promises made by online platforms, hate and harassment are still plaguing the internet. Policymakers and big tech companies must deliver on their commitments to address hate and harassment online,” he added.
The survey also found that harassment of teens aged 13-17 remained steady at 50% this past year.
Conducted in January by YouGov, the survey polled 2,479 adults and 532 teenagers, with a margin of error of two and four percentage points for the two groups respectively.
“The hate and harassment being reported on online platforms is horrendous; it’s getting worse, and it’s likely only the tip of the iceberg,” the ADL’s Center for Technology and Society’s associate director Daniel Kelley said in a statement.
“Even more concerning is the fact that this deluge of hate is happening as the platforms continue to scale back their content moderation teams and there’s zero transparency surrounding how tech companies are enforcing their own rules.”
In February, amid Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza, United States State Department antisemitism envoy Deborah Lipstadt said that the trend of antisemitism, particularly online, had become more pronounced since the terror group’s October 7 massacre.
She highlighted increased antisemitism on social media platforms controlled by the Chinese government, speculating that promoting antisemitic messages could be a way to subvert American interests.
Demonstrations against Israel, along with incidents of antisemitism, have skyrocketed around the world since Hamas’s October 7 massacre, which saw some 3,000 terrorists burst across the border into Israel by land, air and sea, killing some 1,200 people and seizing 251 hostages, mostly civilians, many amid acts of brutality and sexual assault.
