Reports of bias incidents in New Jersey increased by 22 percent from 2022 to 2023, according to preliminary data released by the state’s attorney general Thursday.
The preliminary data shows there were 2,699 bias incidents reported to New Jersey law enforcement in 2023. Anti-black and anti-Jewish bias remained the most common motivations for racial and religious bias incidents, as in previous years. The data further indicates an increase in anti-Muslim and anti-Arab bias, which increased by 75 percent and 70 percent, respectively. Bias incidents in schools also rose significantly last year, with the number of incidents increasing by 34 percent in elementary and secondary schools and by 117 percent in colleges and universities.
The Office of State Attorney General Matthew Platkin also released the final report of bias incident statistics in the state from 2021 to 2022. The data documents the continued rise of bias incidents, with 2,211 incidents reported in 2022 and 1,885 reported in 2021. In response to the data, the office stated:
Attorney General Platkin has made combating bias and hate a top priority and is committed to using every tool and resource available to tackle this problem to ensure that all New Jerseyans are safe and free to live without fear. The Department of Law and Public Safety (LPS) continues to work tirelessly to address the steady rise in reported bias incidents through criminal prosecution, civil enforcement, education, training, outreach, and prevention efforts.
The office additionally released a public awareness bias campaign and an interactive data dashboard in response to the increased bias and hate. LPS plans to launch its Bias Crimes Public Awareness Campaign later this year to increase residents’ awareness of bias incidents, increase reporting of those incidents, and use various media sources to prevent future incidents. The campaign, which will use the tagline “No Hate in the Garden State,” also seeks to inform the public of the resources available to victims. The new Bias Incident Dashboard will additionally provide the public with access to bias incident statistics in New Jersey, and users will be able to see the locations and motivations of the incidents as well as the demographic information related to them. According to the Chief Data Officer for the Office of Justice Data Dr. Kristin Golden, the dashboard will be an effective tool for combating bias and discrimination. She stated, “[b]y sharing this information broadly and consistently, we can more readily understand how bias impacts our communities and work to improve how we address the problem of bias together.”
Platkin’s office claims that the rise in reported bias incidents is partially due to the state’s improvements in reporting and community outreach. The office also believes that other factors, such as the spread of misinformation and bias on social media, the “lingering effects” of the Black Lives Matter movement, and political divisiveness, have contributed to the increase as well.
The report states that “bias incidents are suspected or confirmed acts of bias intimidation motivated by a victim’s perceived or actual race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender, gender identity, or gender expression.” Examples of bias offenses include harassment, assault, arson, and homicide.
According to the Asbury Park Press, the changes in collecting data in recent years mean New Jersey is now combining violent hate crimes with noncriminal acts of hate speech. Some critics argue this could lead the government to try and address the issue of bias and discrimination with an inadequate approach. Platkin, however, emphasizes that New Jersey is taking all incidents seriously, including those that do not rise to the level of a crime. He stated, “[b]ias conduct, even if it’s not a crime or couldn’t be prosecuted, can be a signal that something is going wrong and that we need to, through a variety of channels, intervene.”
The data from New Jersey reflects the national trend of an increase in bias incidents and hate crimes. The FBI released its 2022 Hate Crimes Statistics last October, finding that race-based hate crimes remained the most common and that anti-black and African American incidents were three times higher than the next highest race or ethnicity. The report also found an increase in LGBTQ+ hate crimes, including a rise of nearly 40 percent in anti-transgender incidents from 2021 to 2022. Antisemitic and anti-Muslim sentiments have also increased throughout the nation, particularly following heightened conflict between Israel and Hamas since October 7, 2023.
