Edited by: TJVNews.com

With the alarming rise in visceral Jew hatred in New York City and the increased number of violent attacks on Jews in the Big Apple, the New York Post has published a sharply critical op-ed piece, blasting “lax law enforcement” in the city for the uptick in such attacks, as was reported on the Vois Es NHais web site.

The piece published this weekend, written by Dr. Carl Yonker, a Senior Researcher at the Center for the Study of Contemporary European Jewry at Tel Aviv University, says that the NYPD does not make nearly enough arrests in comparison with the number of hate crimes, and in addition, there are far too few convictions, the VIN report indicated.

It said that of the 261 anti-Jewish hate crimes recorded by the NYPD in 2022, only 72 arrests have been made, VIN reported. In addition, the vast majority of hate crime arrests do not end with hate crime convictions due to the highly controversial bail reform laws in the Empire State as well as “soft on crime” judges and prosecutors.

Dr. Yonker writes: “In recent years, America’s social and political climate has become fertile ground for anti-Semitism. While anti-Semitism in the United States used to be identified with the far-right, it has found fertile ground in today’s culture wars.”

It continues, “Also concerning — and not just for Jews, but all minority communities — are the large gaps between arrests for anti-Semitic crimes and the successful prosecutions and convictions of these incidents as hate crimes,” as was reported by VIN.

The piece was mainly based on a recent study done by the university with the cooperation of the ADL, showing a heavy concentration of anti-Semitic attacks in religious Jewish communities, and a weak response from police and prosecutors, according to the VIN report. Dr. Yonker also says, “Through an analysis of the location and victims of anti-Semitic physical assaults, our study revealed that in New York City, most attacks occurred on streets or public transportation in neighborhoods with high concentrations of ultra-Orthodox Jews. Specifically, Williamsburg, Crown Heights, Borough Park, and Midwood in Brooklyn.”  It added, “Our research also indicates that most of these attacks were not premeditated.”

Dr. Yonker also wrote that, “Alongside the rise in anti-Semitic incidents, the gaps in arresting and prosecuting the perpetrators of anti-Semitic violence are also problematic. Of the 261 anti-Jewish hate crimes recorded by the NYPD in 2022, only 72 arrests have been made. By comparison, of the 83 anti-Asian hate crimes recorded by the NYPD in 2022, 67 arrests have been made, while of the 53 anti-Black hate crimes, only nine arrests have been made.”

The picture is also not encouraging when it comes to prosecuting these incidents as hate crimes. VIN reported that an investigative report published in The City in March 2022 examined data on 569 hate crime arrests in New York City between 2015 and 2020. According to the report’s authors, “while 65% of those arrests ended with convictions, hate crime charges were dropped in most cases – a mere 15% of hate crime arrests ended in hate crime convictions.”

Taking aim at the ineffective justice system that allows repeat offenders, and in particular those who have committed violent crimes to menacingly roam free on the streets of the Big Apple, Dr. Yonker said,  “While hate crime convictions may prove difficult to secure, district attorneys’ offices must nevertheless vigorously pursue criminal charges for even minor offenses to demonstrate that such incidents are not tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Moreover, victims must be made to feel that even if a hate crime conviction is not possible that justice has been done. Because no community will truly feel safe as long as anti-Semitism continues to rise unchecked.”