NJ bias incidents remain near historic highs as students return to school
Nearly a quarter of reported incidents this year have taken place at K-12 schools, while harassment accounts for a growing share.
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Reported bias incidents in New Jersey remain at historically high levels, with 1,540 documented during the first seven months of 2026, according to a News 12 analysis of state data.
That's about 3% more than during the same period last year and already more than the 1,447 incidents reported during all of 2020, which the Attorney General's Office described at the time as a record-setting year.
The numbers have remained elevated after climbing sharply earlier this decade:
2023: 2,726 reported incidents
2024: 2,722
2025: 2,583
The figures include suspected as well as confirmed bias incidents reported to law enforcement and can include cases still under investigation. The Attorney General's Office says current data are subject to change.
Nearly one in four incidents reported at schools
Elementary and secondary schools continue to be the most common location for reported bias incidents. The state recorded 370 incidents at K-12 schools through July, accounting for about 24% of the statewide total.
That is nearly unchanged from the same period last year, when 365 incidents, also about 24% of the total, were reported at elementary and secondary schools.
“Alarmingly, nearly a quarter of all reported bias incidents are taking place in elementary and secondary schools,” the Attorney General's Office said in a statement to News 12.
K-12 schools accounted for about 20% to 23% of New Jersey's reported bias incidents in each full year from 2022 through 2025. The Attorney General's Office has previously said increased reporting in and around schools was likely influenced in part by mandatory school reporting requirements and the spread of bias and hate through social media and cyberspace.
Harassment accounts for a growing share
Harassment accounted for 952 reported bias incidents through July, nearly 62% of the statewide total.
News 12 analyzed harassment's share of reported incidents, which has increased each year - from about 52% in 2021 to nearly 60% in 2025 and nearly 62% through July 2026.
Under state reporting guidelines, harassment is classified as a crime against a person and can include certain communications, offensive touching or threats and other conduct committed with the purpose of harassing someone.
Anti-Black bias remains the leading motivation
Anti-Black bias remained the most commonly reported motivation through July, with 680 recorded motivations - about 37% of all motivations recorded by the state.
Anti-Jewish bias was second, with 387, or about 21%. Together, anti-Black and anti-Jewish bias accounted for nearly three-fifths of the 1,824 motivations recorded through July.
The number of motivations is greater than the number of incidents because a single incident can involve more than one type of bias.
Anti-Jewish motivations increased from 450 in 2022 to 714 in 2023 and have accounted for about 21% to 22% of recorded motivations since then.
Separately, then-Attorney General Matthew Platkin addressed what his office described as a marked increase in bias incidents targeting Jewish and Muslim community members at K-12 schools and college and university campuses following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.
What is behind the numbers?
The Attorney General's Office said several factors likely contribute to the number of reported bias incidents, including social media's ability to spread hateful messages quickly and political divisiveness and extreme rhetoric. The office also cited backlash to the racial-justice movement, efforts by white supremacist groups to bring their ideologies into mainstream society and historically elevated incidents directed at Jewish and Muslim residents.
Changes intended to encourage and streamline reporting also complicate comparisons over longer periods. New Jersey revised its bias incident reporting standards in 2019, launched an online reporting portal in late 2020 and began a public-awareness campaign in 2024 that encourages people to report bias incidents they witness.
The Attorney General's Office has said improved reporting likely explains some, but not all, of the longer-term increase.
