Manalapan graffiti attacks called ‘anti-American’
Police investigate vandalism as hate crime
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Swastikas were painted in red outside of what some witnesses claim were Jewish homes in Manalapan. Photos courtesy Jewish Federation of Monmouth County
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September 6, 2012
Manalapan police and the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office are investigating graffiti attacks that left swastikas and anti-Jewish slogans on various locations in Manalapan.
A dozen swastikas and a sign saying “kill the Jews” were discovered on the morning of Sept. 6.
They appeared on a fence, mailboxes, a car, a telephone box, a road, and on street signs. At one location, the Nazi symbol and the phrase “kill the jews” were painted in red on a white picket fence.
The swastikas appeared on Taylor Mills Road, Livingston Road, Grayson Road, and Route 9 in the Monmouth Heights section of Manalapan, a predominantly Jewish part of the township.
Within hours after the Jewish Federation of Monmouth County was notified of the incidents, its director of community impact, Ariella Raviv, toured the affected areas.
“The people who spoke to me said the homes that were targeted were Jewish homes,” she told NJ Jewish News. “There were mezuzas on the door of the homes that had been painted and the swastikas were also on street signs, which are public property.”
Although Manalapan police and the Monmouth County Prosecutors Office are labeling the incidents a hate crime, “It is not clear who did this, whether it is an organized group or a crazy local kid,” said Keith Krivitzky, executive director of the federation.
“There are always those who espouse hate,” said Joe Hollander, federation president, in a press release. “We recognize the actions of a few do not represent most in our country. Acts of hate are anti-American. We have full confidence in the [police and prosecutors] to investigate this crime fully.”
The graffiti assaults were discovered the morning after the federation sponsored a Security Preparedness Training for the community, scheduled ahead of this month's High Holy Day observances. Four local security experts led the training at the Marlboro Jewish Center.
“Our goal is to enable all of our partners to be as welcoming as possible during the High Holy Days, while also being as smart as possible in terms of recognizing potential risks and having a game plan in place for dealing with security issues,” said Krivitzky.
He called the attacks “a wake-up call."
"We live in a great, warm, welcoming place, but at the same time, there are extremists who exist out there. That is something important to be aware of,” he told NJJN.
The Anti-Defamation League is partnering with law enforcement agencies and the federation in investigating the incidents and denouncing those who would deface property with the Nazi symbol.
“The swastika is not merely an anti-Semitic symbol,” said Jeffrey Salkin, ADL’s New Jersey community director. “As the symbol of the most hated regime in history, a regime against which Americans fought and died, it is an affront to all people. We cannot afford to believe that only Jews own that pain. While it was true that this was targeted against Jewish homes, anyone seeing a swastika anywhere should feel it in his or her gut.”
The timing of the incident so close to the start of Rosh Hashana has Krivitzky and other leaders especially concerned about the safety of synagogues in their community.
“We want to engage our partners in the Jewish community and have them take security seriously,” he said. “We have some excellent experts who willing to work with any of our partners to go more in depth and do risk assessments for the High Holy Days and beyond.
“Many of our community rabbis are going to speak about this on Shabbat or the holidays. It is a theme that is going to play out of the next few months,” he said.
Federation offers reward for information
A $2,500 reward is being offered by the Jewish Federation of Monmouth County to anyone who provides information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the person or persons responsible for the anti-Semitic vandalism of a number of properties in Manalapan, Acting Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni announced.
During the overnight hours of September 5 through 6, several residents in the Monmouth Heights development in Manalapan awoke to find red swastikas and other hateful graffiti spraypainted throughout their residential community. The bias graffiti was painted on road signs, sidewalks, vehicles, utility boxes and fences.
Anyone with information about this incident should contact Detective David D’Amico of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office at 732/620-2307 or Detective Thomas Mantle of the Manalapan Police Department at 732/446-8385.
Comments
Julius Zsako
September 06, 2012
What is it with graffiti vandals? This sort of hate graffiti has a great deal in common with other forms of graffiti - it is an attempt to gain visibility. Taggers write graffiti for their own recognition, and these goofs do it to promote a foolish ideology or lash out on others. Childish and immature, as well as costly. Graffiti experts estimate that graffiti vandalism requires $12 billion a year for clean-up. Learn more at www.DefacinfAmerica.com
rabbi dr. bernhard rosenberg
September 10, 2012
I HAVE WARNED THE AMERICAN JEWISH PUBLIC OVER AND OVER. anti-Semitism is alive and well. Nine swastikas in Edison N.J. A FEW YEARS AGO INCLUDING ON MY CONGREGATION Beth EL ;no one caught. rabbi dr. bernhard rosenberg