Antisemitic incidents in California have skyrocketed, Jewish leaders say

SACRAMENTO - As protests continue to erupt across the country, Jewish leaders in Northern California say the rate of antisemitic incidents has now broken records.

Universities across the nation have become ground zero for people protesting the Isreal Hamas war.

At Columbia , classes have moved to online learning to keep students safe, barricades have gone up around New York University , and at Yale, things have reached a boiling point .

Tensions on campuses have led to concerns about harassment and safety for the schools' Jewish communities.

"So they started taunting me and giving me their middle finger and yelling in my face. And until one of them waved his Palestinian flag in my face and then jabbed me with it in my left eye," said Sahar Tartek, the editor-in-chief of the Yale Free Press.

"It's something that the Jewish community feels viscerally in a way that antisemitism hasn't been felt in a long time," Mark Levine said.

Levine is the director of the Anti-Defamation League Central Pacific Region. He says the number of antisemitic incidents has skyrocketed in California.

"We have the highest spike in antisemitism compared to anywhere else nationally. It soared across the U.S. by about 140%. Here in Northern California - a 202% increase," Levine said.

Pro-Palestinian protestors clashed with police on the campus of Cal Poly Humboldt this week .

Earlier this month, a legal complaint was filed against UC Davis, alleging antisemitism in the classroom and out around campus.

When asked about recent protests, President Joe Biden denounced antisemitism but said people also need to think of the Palestinian community.

"I condemn the antisemitic protests, that's why I've set up a program to deal with that. I also condemn those who don't understand what's going on with the Palestinians," Biden said.

Some colleges have started to give protestors a deadline to move out. But will they remain?

"You can criticize a government but still support a country's right to exist but I think far too many people are saying maybe Israel doesn't have a right to exist," Levine said.

The ADL has a heat map that tracks certain hate crimes on its website .