Sharp Rise In Anti-Semitic Incidents In Wash. In 2018: ADL

SEATTLE, WA — Not even a week after a shooting at a California synagogue that left one person dead, the Anti-Defamation League is out with a new report showing rise in antisemitism nationwide — including a 60 percent rise in incidents in Washington alone.

The ADL counted 32 incidents in Washington in 2018, up from 20 in 2017. The incidents cover a range of extremist actions, from a murder in Renton that police say was committed by a white supremacist, to the discovery of a swastika at a Woodinville restaurant.

"These numbers just continue to prove that our work is as timely as ever, and we will continue to work so that hate does not have a home in the Pacific Northwest," ADL Regional Director Miri Cypers said in a statement.

READ: Antisemitic Slurs Found In Seattle Neighborhood

The ADL's report was released just days before Holocaust Remembrance Day on May 2. Last Saturday, a gunman went to a temple in Poway, Calif., and shot multiple people, killing worshiper Lori Gilbert Kaye.

Here are some 2018 and 2019 incidents in Puget Sound from the ADL's "H.E.A.T Map."

Bellevue

In July 2018 and January 2019, the group Patriot Front distributed fliers and put up posters that had phrases like, "Keep America American" and "Welcome to occupied America."

In June 2018, Patriot Front distributed plastic bags with candy and leaflets that read "Keep America American." (Read the Patch story here)

Kirkland

Kirkland residents in October 2018 found white supremacist propaganda from Patriot Front. Flyers and stickers posted around the city read, "Will your speech be hate speech?" and "Keep America American." (read the Patch article here)

Patriot Front returned to Kirkland in January 2019, distributing fliers that read, "Better dead than red."

Renton

In September 2018, a Tacoma man who owned a business called Aryan Enterprises killed a Renton man in a plot to take the victim's home and property, authorities say. Jeremy James Shaw, 39, has been charged with murder, according to court records.

Seattle

On Jan. 6, 2019, a man who identified as a Proud Boy was accused of killing his brother with a sword. The Proud Boys later said the suspect was not a member, failing to make it past the "first degree." (Read the Patch story here)

Also on Jan. 6, 2019, the alt-right group Patriot Front hung a banner over I-90 that read, "Communism: not here not ever."

An identified neo-Nazi, Patrick Little (read more about Little here), appeared at Pike Place Market in September 2018 holding a sign with a picture of a woman that read, "Raped by Jews."

In November 2018, a sticker was found in a bathroom at the University of Washington that said "Gas the k--es."

The ADL says that high school students in October 2018 published a newsletter called "The Money Jew" that was filled with anti-Semitic propaganda.

Shoreline

Antisemitic graffiti was found on a wall along Linden Avenue in August 2018 near Ronald United Methodist church.

Woodinville

A Jewish restaurant employee came to work to find a swastika carved into a door in July 2018.