A succah on the campus of Lehman College in The Bronx, one of the colleges in the City University system, was set afire, damaged and defaced by unknown vandals. The succah, made of wood, weeds, and branches was built on the college campus by the Hillel Foundation. An account of the incident appeared in the college undergraduate newspaper the “Meridian.” The newspaper quoted Hillel president Steve Rosen as reporting that “during October 5, the second day of Succoth, someone tried and failed to overturn the succah. The vandal or vandals then set the succah on fire and painted a swastika on a poster attached to the structure.”
Rosen said that “vandalism was not unique, asserting that every year it’s the same thing.” Nathan Kolodny, campus security director, told the “Meridian” that according to a guard, the fire was seen by campus police and quickly put out without the help of the fire department. Kolodny said that “the vandals escaped and there were no suspects.” College officials insisted that the incident was not motivated by anti-Semitism.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
