(JTA) — Two menorahs have been vandalized on Brooklyn playgrounds during Hanukkah.
One in the Prospect Heights neighborhood was twisted and knocked off its base, according to the news website DNAinfo. In adjoining Park Slope, a menorah had a branch torn off and its wiring ripped out and cut.
Rabbi Mendy Hecht of the Chabad of Park Slope, who set up the menorahs, discovered the vandalism Tuesday when he came to add candles and the menorahs were not there. Subsequently he was told by the New York City Parks Department that they had been removed.
“Taken out of its place, torn apart, broken … That’s something more than I’ve ever experienced,” Hecht said, according to DNAinfo.
The Parks Department said the agency is working with the New York Police Department to monitor the situation.
Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams denounced the acts, as did the Anti-Defamation League.
“The menorah is one of the oldest Jewish symbols that represents faith, the Hanukkah holiday, and the perseverance of the Jewish people,” said Evan Bernstein, ADL’s New York Regional director. “It is an enduring symbol of Judaism, and its desecration is a shameful reminder that anti-Semitism still exists in our communities.”
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
