Swastikas in Orthodox neighborhood’s playground as antisemitic crimes surge in NYC

Antisemitic hate crimes in New York City are up by more than 50 percent compared to last year.

By Dion J. Pierre, The Algemeiner

New York City police are investigating two swastikas at a playground in the Orthodox Jewish neighborhood of Borough Park, Brooklyn, amid a surge in antisemitic hate crimes this year.

The offensive symbols were discovered Sunday afternoon on a structure at Gravesend Park and reported to the voluntary neighborhood patrol group Boro Park Shomrim, who contacted the NYPD, according to a local outlet.

The incident, occurring in one of the largest Jewish communities in the United States, prompted condemnations from New York City leaders.

“Despicable hateful symbols will not be tolerated in our neighborhoods, nor any other neighborhood for that matter,” New York City Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein told a local paper on Sunday. “Those responsible will be found and brought to justice. I want to thank Boro Park Shomrim for their swift response to this latest antisemitic incident.”

On Twitter, Assemblyman David Schwartz said swastikas represent “humanity’s darkest chapter in history. It’s outrageous that this is what we have to deal with in a neighborhood with so many Holocaust survivors.”

Antisemitic hate crimes in New York City are up by more than 50 percent compared to last year, with 183 incidents logged in 2021, the NYPD reported earlier this month. Overall, hate crimes in the city have doubled since 2020.

Congressman Jerry Nadler called on New Yorkers on Sunday to “speak out against anti-Semitism, hatred and intolerance.”

“Hate crimes have no place in our community and acts of religious bigotry cannot be tolerated under any circumstances,” he said.