Chicago synagogue, Jewish school vandalized with antisemitic graffiti

Jewish businesses, synagogue in nearby suburb also reportedly targeted; city council member says the vandalism has ‘all the hallmarks of hate-based crimes’

By AP 31 January 2022, 7:33 pm

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Illustrative: Police tape marks off a Chicago street as officers investigate the scene of a fatal shooting in the city's South Side on June 15, 2021. (AP Photo/ Teresa Crawford/File)

CHICAGO — A synagogue and a Jewish school in Chicago were vandalized over the weekend with swastika images and antisemitic graffiti, officials said.

The incidents occurred Sunday at the FREE Synagogue and Hanna Sacks Bais Yaakov High School.

“We’ll get through it,” Rabbi Levi Notik told WFLD-TV. “I want to thank law enforcement, they did a tremendous job. They were here very quick, had detectives here in minutes.”

Vandalism also occurred at a synagogue in the Chicago suburb of Lincolnwood, WMAQ-TV reported.

A Jewish group, the Concerned Citizens League, said windows were broken Saturday at a Chicago bakery and a kosher food store.

“No official pronouncement has been made on a possible motive, but these have all the hallmarks of hate-based crimes,” said Debra Silverstein, a member of the Chicago City Council.