HOUSTON — The Department of Homeland Security released a new bulletin naming minority groups who are "targets of potential violence," including the LGBTQ, Jewish and migrant communities.
“It is something that weighs on everyone's mind," said Anti-Defamation League Southwest Regional Director Mark Toubin. "It creates anxiety."
Toubin said while he’s grateful this alert was issued, the Jewish community has been dealing with the rise in antisemitism for half a decade.
“About the last five, even maybe six years," Toubin said. "And it is at an all-time high, according to records that we've been keeping since the late 70s."
This year alone, the ADL said it has tracked over 500 antisemitic incidents nationally, with 18 of those occurring in Texas.
“We hear reports all the time with people who are encountering antisemitism, whether it's in school, whether it's work and other places," he said.
Recent antisemitic rhetoric by “Ye," formerly known as “Kanye West," created worldwide controversy. In addition, there was the November attack on an LGBTQ+ bar in Colorado Springs.
“No particular group in this country is safe unless everyone is safe. And so just because hate is being directed in one direction, history shows that eventually, it'll catch up with everyone," Toubin said.
Toubin said precautions like attack training at synagogues are taking place but stopping this hate starts with speaking up against it.
Below are links to ADL resources for tracking hate and helping to report incidents.