Assessing the Temporal Proximity of Hate-Based Incidents and Protest Events Amid the Israel-Hamas War

• In Event: Manifestations of Extremism: Cross-Ideological Patterns in Political Violence

Abstract

Religiously motivated crimes have been a pressing social concern in the United States for decades, impacting nearly three thousand individuals each year. Jewish and Muslim populations often are recipients of such bias-motivated offenses, with the FBI reporting 1,832 anti-Jewish and 236 anti-Muslim bias incidents in 2023. These groups have received increased media attention and discourse since the Israel-Hamas war began. Protests surrounding the war and the rights of minoritized religious groups may contribute to increased vulnerabilities for hate-based victimization for Jews and/or Muslims. This study examines whether U.S. pro-Israel and pro-Palestine protests act as triggering events that spike religiously motivated hate crimes towards the perceived targets of grievances. To assess this, we examine the temporal and spatial proximity of hate-based incidents to protest events, and whether specific protest messaging influences the severity of hate crimes using data from the FBI’s Hate Crime Statistics and protest event data from the Crowd Counting Consortium. The results from time-series and regression analyses advance our understanding of how protests can impact public safety and pose risks to individuals targeted for their perceived religious identities. Policy implications discuss how law enforcement and communities can reduce risks to vulnerable individuals and prevent retaliatory violence after protests.

Authors

• Adrienne J Brookstein, Temple University

• Amarat Zaatut, Temple University

• Jeffrey T. Ward, Temple University