Reported hate crimes in New York City made a marked drop over the last year, according to data released by the NYPD Tuesday.
During a meeting about its High Holy Days security detail, the department said that year-to-date hate crimes had declined by 8 percent compared to 2017. By Aug. 26, there were 239 reported hate crimes in 2017, but this year 219 incidents have been reported over the same period, according to NYPD data.
Reported anti-Semitic hate crimes took a 12 percent dip during that period going from 108 in 2017 to 95 this year.
Reported anti-Muslim incidents went down by an even larger 36 percent, dropping from 25 last year to 16 this year, the NYPD said.
“The reduction in hate crimes was done in collaboration with our community partners and the media by raising awareness about such incidents,” NYPD spokeswoman Sgt. Jessica McRorie said in a statement.
Despite the overall decreases, the city has investigated several high-profile hate incidents this summer.
Earlier this month, an unidentified suspect spray painted anti-Asian graffiti on Asian-owned businesses in Sunset Park. Police are also looking for someone who was caught on camera Sunday night spray painting swastikas on FDNY ambulances, as well as “Nazis are pigs” on a firehouse garage door in Hudson Heights.
