A security guard stands outside Congregation Machane Chodosh where a swastika was spray-painted in Forest Hills, Queens, on Monday. Several New York City synagogues and homes were vandalized with swastikas overnight, according to the city council speaker.
On Monday, Julie Menin, along with other city council members including Lynn Schulman and Phil Wong, visited Congregation Machane Chodosh, one of the sites targeted in Forest Hills. In a statement online, Menin said: "When rabbis and congregants arrived to pray this morning, they expected to be met with their usual loving community. When a family woke up, they were prepared to begin an otherwise normal week. Instead, they were met with terrifying signals of hatred and threats of violence."
Photos shared online showed black swastikas spray-painted on synagogue walls, a garage door with the symbol circled in red, and what appeared to be the window of a nearby residence. Other sites targeted include the Rego Park Jewish Center, which was spray-painted with swastikas alongside the word "Hitler" in red paint.
Menin said she and the other council members visited multiple vandalized locations and are in contact with police, who are investigating and searching for at least four individuals. She added that the graffiti would be removed once the investigation is complete.
Yossi Mendelson, Congregation Machane Chodosh's rabbi, predicted the latest incident would further unite the community, rather than instill fear. "They'll carry on spray-painting, and we'll live on," he said. "I think it'll have the opposite effect. The community feels called to action by this."
Zohran Mamdani said he was "horrified and angered" by the incident. "This is not just vandalism – it is a deliberate act of antisemitic hatred meant to instill fear," the New York City mayor said in a statement. "There is no place for antisemitism in Queens or anywhere in our city. I stand in solidarity with our Jewish neighbors. Their safety, dignity and belonging are non-negotiable."
In January, two teenagers were arrested and charged with hate crimes after dozens of swastikas were found painted on a playground in Brooklyn. After that incident, Mamdani condemned the vandalism, saying he was "sickened by this antisemitic vandalism", adding: "Antisemitism has no place in our city, and I stand shoulder to shoulder with the Jewish New Yorkers who were targeted."
