JCI

JEWCONCENTRATION INDEX

Population Concentration Analysis Tool

About This Project

The Jew Concentration Index (JCI) is a geographic visualization tool that maps Jewish population density across the United States using publicly available data sources. The project aggregates multiple datasets to provide insights into demographic patterns and community distribution.

Data Sources

Voter Registration Records

Surname-based population estimates are derived from state voter registration files, which are public records available through each state's Secretary of State or Board of Elections. States like Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, and Pennsylvania provide these files for research purposes.

Synagogues & Places of Worship

Religious institution locations are sourced from OpenStreetMap, a collaborative mapping project with global coverage. Data is fetched via the Overpass API.

Jewish Community Centers & Schools

JCC locations and Jewish day school data are compiled from public directories and organizational listings.

Chabad Houses

Chabad-Lubavitch center locations are sourced from public Chabad directories and mapping services.

Billionaire Residences

Billionaire location data is compiled from Forbes 400 listings and publicly reported residence information.

Political Donor Data

AIPAC and political donor information is sourced from Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings, which are public records available at fec.gov.

Methodology

The surname analysis uses established research on Jewish surname frequency. Names like Cohen, Levy, Goldberg, and Shapiro have been identified in academic studies as having high probability of Jewish heritage. Each surname is assigned a probability weight based on historical census data and genealogical research.

Data Processing Pipeline

  1. Voter registration records are filtered by target surnames
  2. Addresses are geocoded to latitude/longitude coordinates
  3. Points are aggregated into ~500m grid cells to protect individual privacy
  4. Original address data is discarded after cell assignment
  5. Only cell-level density counts are stored and displayed

Privacy Considerations

All individual-level data is aggregated to grid cells before visualization. No specific addresses or identifiable information is stored or displayed on the map. The minimum cell size ensures that individual households cannot be identified.

Source data consists entirely of public records that are legally available for research and analytical purposes.

Covered Regions

Currently, the index covers the following East Coast states: