US President Donald Trump vowed to combat antisemitism in the United States in a post on X/Twitter on Saturday.
On the White House’s account, a video of the president extending well-wishes for Jewish Heritage Month was posted, thanking Jewish Americans for their societal contributions.
“Since all the way back before our nation’s founding, Jewish citizens have been part of this fabric of this wonderful American republic,” Trump said in his statement. “Over the generations, they’ve become our greatest scientists, doctors, artists, jurists, and certainly businesspeople; including Albert Einstein, George Gershwin, Henry Kissinger, Milton Friedman, and so many others,” he added.
✡️ "America is the home to the largest Jewish population outside of Israel by far, & we will defend our people... That's why we have taken unprecedented action to end the scourge of antisemitism in our streets and our schools and college campuses will be safe." –President Trump pic.twitter.com/mV3avyYaWk
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 16, 2025
Trump also noted that the United States is home to the largest Jewish population outside of Israel, vowing to defend the American people and their religious beliefs. He said that his administration was taking unprecedented steps to counter the rapid rise in antisemitism in the country, particularly in educational institutions.
Antisemitism in American universities
Antisemitic incidents in the United States increased once again in 2024, the Anti-Defamation League reported, reaching a new all-time high and providing the latest indicator of a continued surge in antisemitism following October 7, 2023.
The report, released last week, recorded 9,354 antisemitic incidents across the country, marking a 5% increase from the previous year. That figure is almost 10 times the number recorded a decade ago, in 2014. Tuesday’s report found that antisemitic assaults, vandalism, and harassment all rose year over year, while the use of antisemitic propaganda fell.
For the first time since the ADL began publishing the audits in 1979, a majority of all incidents were related to Israel or Zionism. Half took place at anti-Israel rallies.
Grace Gilson/JTA contributed to this report.