In a terror threat bulletin Wednesday, the United States Department of Homeland Security is sounding the alarm about threats to both the Jewish and LGBTQ communities.
Antisemitism and homophobia have both dominated recent news cycles, considering recent antisemitic remarks and attitudes from media and political figures, and the fatal shooting at a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs earlier this month.
Now, DHS stated that “the United States remains in a heightened threat environment” in general as “lone offenders and small groups motivated by a range of ideological beliefs and/or personal grievances continue to pose a persistent and lethal threat to the homeland.”
Specifically, DHS stated that “hatred toward Jewish people” was a motivating factor in a threat on synagogues made by a New Jersey man.
“Recent incidents have highlighted the enduring threat to faith-based communities, including the Jewish community,” DHS stated. “In early November 2022, an individual in New Jersey was arrested for sharing a manifesto online that threatened attacks on synagogues. The individual admitted to writing the document, in which he claimed to be motivated by the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS) and hatred towards Jewish people.”
DHS is asking people to report suspicious activity to law enforcement, seek help for people struggling with mental health issues and be vigilant particularly around public gatherings, faith-based institutions such as churches, synagogues and mosques, LGBTQ+ spaces, schools, and other government facilities.
