Massachusetts antisemitism incidents fell in 2025 but remain well above levels seen before Oct. 7, 2023, according to the Anti-Defamation League’s latest audit. ADL counted 279 incidents statewide last year, down 36% from 2024, with Boston recording 57, the most of any city in the state, the ADL audit shows.
What the ADL Audit Found in Massachusetts
Across New England, ADL tracked 400 incidents of harassment, vandalism and assault in 2025, compared with 638 in 2024, a 37% drop. The regional total is still nearly double the annual counts before Oct. 7, 2023, ADL New England said when it released the figures on May 6.
- Massachusetts: 279 incidents, down 36% from 2024.
- Middlesex County: 108 incidents; Middlesex and Suffolk counties together made up 61% of the state total.
- Non-Jewish K-12 schools: up 50%, from 50 incidents in 2024 to 75 in 2025, the only Massachusetts location type to rise.
- Colleges and universities: down 65%, from 107 to 37.
- Swastikas appeared in 89 of the 279 Massachusetts incidents (32%).
ADL New England Regional Director Samantha Joseph called the decrease “a clear sign of progress” but said “400 incidents in a single year is still nearly double what this region saw before October 7, 2023.” The Boston Globe reported that Joseph said some of the K-12 increase may reflect improved reporting relationships between schools and ADL, and that 41% of New England incidents in 2025 were related to Israel or Zionism, down from 63% in 2024.
FBI Hate Crime Data
FBI data released in August show 1,528 single-bias anti-Jewish hate crime incidents nationwide in 2025, down from a record 1,938 in 2024 but the third-highest year on record, according to an ADL summary of the FBI figures. Anti-Jewish incidents made up 63% of the 2,408 religion-based hate crimes reported. In announcing the state commission’s report last December, Massachusetts legislative leaders cited FBI data showing 84.4% of religious-bias hate crimes in the Commonwealth were committed against Jews.
The Massachusetts Antisemitism Commission
The Legislature’s Special Commission on Combating Antisemitism, chaired by Rep. Simon Cataldo and Sen. John Velis, approved its final report unanimously on Nov. 20, 2025. Legislative leaders described it as the first commission of its kind created by a state legislature. Its recommendations cover K-12 and higher education, public safety, workplaces and health care, and include adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism.
Gov. Maura Healey named Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll as the administration’s point person for implementing the recommendations, and Driscoll said K-12 schools would be her first priority, the Jewish Journal reported in January. The report also drew criticism. A shadow report by a group of Jewish faculty and staff argued against the IHRA recommendation, and one of the definition’s lead drafters, Kenneth Stern, has himself warned against it being “weaponized” to treat criticism of Israel as antisemitism, the Hechinger Report noted.
Security Funding for Houses of Worship
In March, the Healey-Driscoll administration awarded $4,965,000 to 167 nonprofits through two state programs that pay for physical security upgrades and contracted security staff. Applications hit a record, with 274 eligible applications for the security grant program and 53 for the personnel program. Recipients included Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu and Sikh institutions as well as schools and health centers. Boston-area recipients included Temple Israel of Boston ($40,600), Hebrew SeniorLife ($25,812), Temple Ohabei Shalom in Brookline ($39,999), the Islamic Society of Boston in Cambridge ($10,500) and Arlington Street Church ($36,350).
Organizers of this week’s October 7 anniversary events have noted security precautions. For background, see our explainer on Boston’s Jewish community history and our earlier report on the U.K.’s security response to antisemitism.