Brooklyn Swastikas Found: Another Anti-Semitic Crime Under Investigation

The string of anti-Semitic crimes in Brooklyn continues.

The New York City Police Department is now investigating an incident in which a swastika was scratched into an elevator on Ross Street in Williamsburg.

This is the second time an elevator in the building has been vandalized with the anti-Semitic symbol.

The offending swastikas have since been removed.

This incident comes after a shocking anti-Semitic hate crime in Brooklyn earlier this month, where three cars were set ablaze and over a dozen swastikas were scrawled on benches.

As New York Magazine reports:

[P]olice, who are handling the incident as a hate crime, say that "KKK" was spray-painted on the side of a van, swastikas were scrawled on benches, and the words "Fuck Jews" were written on the sidewalk. "The fact that this most recent attack came on the heels of the 73rd anniversary of Kristalnacht [sic] may or may not be a coincidence,” Mayor Bloomberg said in a statement.

The area of Brooklyn targeted contains one of the largest concentrations of Holocaust survivors outside of Israel, according to the New York Times.

The jarring incident prompted over a hundred people to take to the streets in a protest for tolerance.

Just a week later, a subway station sign in Brooklyn was vandalized to read "Avenue Jew." As Fox reports:

A vandal altered a sign at the J train subway station in a heavily Jewish neighborhood of Midwood. The letters "e" and "w" added with blue spray paint at the end of the "J" in the Avenue J sign to make it read "Avenue Jew."

Despite the appearance of a string of hate crimes targeting the Jewish population, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz characterized the events as anomalies in an interview with CBS New York. "You will discover that they are anti-Semitic hooligans probably drunk on the beer they used and think this is fun," he said.

The elevator incident is being investigated by the NYPD hate crimes task force. So far, no-one has been arrested.

Comments

[gov111w]

11:56 AM on 11/28/2011

This country has seen a consistent attack on religion for the last 20 years or so. It was subtle at first but more prominent now. These attacks seemed to be aimed at Christians...but it is the belief in God that is under general attack. Eventually the silent majority of people who believe in God will see these attacks for what they really are and unite against this subversive enemy. When one religion is undergoing attack…all religions must fear that they will be next.

[gov111w]

11:57 AM on 11/28/2011

She is down occupying Wall Street !!!

[ruleoflaw66]

03:34 PM on 11/27/2011

And what about the terrible things still being done to people of color in our country who after 400 years of being property, are still kept in ghettos, still treated as less than human, and still represent the largest segment of political prisoners in America--which, btw, has more people in prison than any other major nation in the world, including China.

Yes it's a terrible thing that happened 60 years ago, but it's time to remember that in the long view of history it was just one of many atrocities committed against any number of Peoples. The disenfranchisement and political repression of African Americans continues to this day.

[dblueII]

05:04 PM on 11/27/2011

In the long view of history, these types of acts are the results of thousands of years of systematic persecution. Hatred of jews, and attempts to irradiate them neither started or ended 60 years ago. There has been no other group who has worked as hard for the rights of all men and women in this country than the American Jew. How anyone can look at these acts and simply say, what about the (fill in the blank) is baffling, and extreemly depressing.

[adamben]

12:05 PM on 11/28/2011

i believe the point is that the hate continues and is happening here in ny.

yes, you should write an article about the suffering of african americans.

[rltor45]

10:51 AM on 11/27/2011

THE SWASTIKA, IS BEING USED BY HINDUS FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS NOW, A SYMBOL OF PEACE !! SO WHAT, THEY WILL DEMAND THAT THE HINDUS STOPPED USING IT ??? I DO NOT THINK SO !!

[see-ellen2001]

01:55 PM on 11/27/2011

Ritor45: context is REAL important. I seriously doubt a roving band of Hindus were plastering a Jewish neighbourhood with this symbol.

[Huffy Puff]

03:59 PM on 11/27/2011

To be fair, the people who spray-painted swastikas on the property were not Hindus nor were they trying to promote peace.

[BrooklynChef]

10:11 AM on 11/27/2011

If someone writes the N-word on a wall, everyone would be up in arms. Many of the comments on this thread, that argue that the swastika is a hindu symbol, or that the Jews brought this upon themselves, or that it is just some punk kids and it means nothing, are just symptoms of the fact that antisemitism is rampant and acceptable. It is disgusting.

[Try the truth]

02:34 PM on 11/27/2011

Wrong! There have been MANY arguments right here on this site, in which people have said it's only a "word" and we blacks need to get over it. I'm still trying to figure out why it's important to some whites that they be able to use the word! Why is that?

[Colleen42Nyc]

08:09 PM on 11/27/2011

I am not sure why anyone uses that word! White or Black!

[BrooklynChef]

10:04 AM on 11/27/2011

How dare you? Nobody deserves hatred. They are innocent. And your comment is offensive. And, HP is complicit in posting the garbage you spew.

[outasite]

01:12 AM on 11/27/2011

Attack? Hate crime? Blown way out of proportion. Just some hateful vandals and they got just what they wanted; publicity.

[Peter Speight]

11:46 PM on 11/26/2011

Meanwhile some of these message boards, and a select few of the writers, write anti-Arab racist comments. But the anti-Arabism in the USA and Western media (terrorists, violent, stupid, lecherous) never makes the news.

[Sion Abramov]

11:44 AM on 11/27/2011

look up the statistics. Anti arab in the US does exist but it is now way as bad as the antisemitism. The muslims and liberals always love to complain about islamaphobia when Antisemitism is much more rampant in the US. its ok though. us jews can take it. Trust me when I say the hate against us jews for being born was much worse in europe and the arab countries a lot of us are from. And now we have Yisrael and she is a shinning light in dark region and she will be there waiting for us when worse comes to worst. Am Yisrael Chai

[see-ellen2001]

01:58 PM on 11/27/2011

Sion: I think some get more alarmed at the unusual 'isms'; some don't 'see' anti semitism for what it is bcs society is used to seeing it, sadly.

[Huffy Puff]

11:20 PM on 11/26/2011

I condemn the anti-semitic vandalism that has taken place but I think Avenue Jew is an awesome name for a street sign. The community should keep the sign as a symbol of pride and authenticity for the tourists to see. You haven't tried real Jewish food until you visited Avenue Jew.

[straight32]

01:21 PM on 11/30/2011

How would you like an Avenue C where you haven't tasted wafers until you visited .....

[dblueII]

05:16 PM on 11/27/2011

. These acts are symptoms of a degenerative disease. You ignore symptoms at your own risk.

[ruleoflaw66]

10:47 PM on 11/26/2011

I tried to offer this Definition of the phrase we're discussing here in it's anti- application and to whom the term really pertains, but no luck so far. Here it is again:

a : a member of any of a number of peoples of ancient southweste­rn Asia including the Akkadians, Phoenician­s, Hebrews, and Arabs.

Arabs.

Interestin­g, yes?

[adamben]

12:15 PM on 11/28/2011

and people who claim they are native americans are not necessarily "native americans" (indians). the key here is usage. when people talk about "anti-semitism" it is well understood to mean hatred towards jews.

[malander]

10:39 PM on 11/26/2011

Ignorant, angry people do things like this.Sad that it continues here and all over the world. Human nature I guess.

[Daniel Wilcox]

10:38 PM on 11/26/2011

What a shame. Very sad.

[Leviathan21]

10:30 PM on 11/26/2011

Unacceptable.

[iridium53]

10:01 PM on 11/26/2011

Has NYPD arrested anyone?

Of course not.