(The Center Square) – The third greatest number of antisemitic incidents on record were reported in the U.S. in 2025. Of the 10 states with the most incidents reported, Texas ranked eighth, according to a new report from the Anti-Defamation League.
Harris, Dallas and Travis counties accounted for 65% of the incidents reported in the state with Houston accounting for nearly 25% of incidents statewide.
Of the 6,274 antisemitic incidents reported in the U.S. last year, including harassment, vandalism and physical assault, 188 occurred in Texas, according to the ADL report.
The number represents a 25% drop from 2024 – the year with the highest incidents on record in Texas and nationwide, The Center Square reported.
As in previous years, antisemitic incidents were heavily concentrated in Harris, Dallas and Travis counties, the report said, accounting for 65% of all reported incidents.
In Houston, 67 incidents were reported, including bomb threats and synagogues being threatened, according to the report.
The majority of incidents reported in Texas occurred in public areas, followed by threats against Jewish institutions, Jewish businesses, K-12 public schools, colleges and universities, according to the data.
While the numbers were down over the year, they were still up compared to previous years.
In 2024, Texas ranked 12th nationwide for having the most incidents. In 2025, it ranked 8th and the total number of incidents was 68% higher than those reported in 2021, according to the data.
“This trend underscores a troubling and sustained ‘new normal’ of elevated antisemitism over the past five years,” the ADL says. It’s been reporting on antisemitic incidents in the U.S. since 1979.
The data was released as an alleged terrorist attack targeting a Houston synagogue was foiled and one alleged Houston attacker remain detained.
The 16-year-old arrested in Harris County for the alleged attack appeared last week before a judge, who ordered he remain in juvenile detention. The teenager was charged with conspiracy to commit murder for his role in an alleged plan to drive a vehicle into Congregation Beth Israel Synagogue in Houston and its day school to “kill as many Jews as possible,” authorities said, The Center Square reported.
The Houston teen was arrested by Houston police, FBI Houston and the Alief ISD Police officers after a multistate FBI investigation was launched that also led to the arrest of 18-year-old Angelina Hicks in Davidson County, North Carolina.
The Houton teenager goes before the court every 10 business days due to state law governing the juvenile system. His state-appointed attorney told KHOU 11 News, “the state does and should take these kind of allegations very seriously.”
Hicks’ father told North Carolina news outlets that she wouldn’t have committed such a crime and blamed law enforcement for arresting her. She is currently being held on a $10 million bond.
Both teenagers reportedly met through an online gaming platform, Roblox. Their alleged plot was foiled two days after Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, called for an investigation into Roblox for promoting mass murder and active shooter games targeting children in schools, The Center Square reported.
“Incidents like this reinforce the urgent need for closer scrutiny of the digital environments our children are exposed to on widely used platforms like Roblox. If Roblox were a person, they would already be in prison,” he told The Center Square.
After the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack against Israel, antisemitic incidents increased nationwide.
Gov. Greg Abbott implemented a series of actions to combat antisemitism and protect Jewish communities, institutions and students. He surged law enforcement resources, including last year, and directed all state-funded higher education institutions to squash any campus riots or encampments.
The state legislature also allocated funding for Jewish institutions to enhance security measures and also advanced multiple resources for K-12 schools and colleges and universities, including educational resources about antisemitism.
