“Perpetrators feel increasingly emboldened to act openly, publicly,” Jaime Kirzner-Roberts, of the Canadian Friends of Simon Wiesenthal, told JNS.
Despite the dip in official reports, the actual number of hate crimes rose 19% from 372 in 2023 to 443 in 2024. Jews, who make up just 3.6% of Toronto’s population, were the target in 40% of all hate crimes and 81% of religiously motivated incidents.
The report highlighted that religion was the top motive, followed by sexual orientation and race/ethnicity. The most affected communities were Jewish, 2SLGBTQ+, Black, and Muslim. Notably, nearly half of antisemitic incidents happened in public spaces.
“This is a crisis,” said Jaime Kirzner-Roberts of Canadian Friends of Simon Wiesenthal. “The statistics confirm what we feel every day—there is a deep and rising threat.” She warned that the open, public nature of the incidents shows perpetrators feel “emboldened,” with little fear of justice.
