Chicago, IL – A Chicago synagogue and Jewish school were defaced with swastikas and antisemitic graffiti on Sunday, and a Jewish community group said that other Jewish locations in the neighborhood were also targeted this weekend.
On Sunday afternoon, Hanna Sacks Bais Yaakov High School and FREE Synagogue in the West Ridge neighborhood were vandalized. A man walking nearby into service was assaulted verbally assaulted.
FREE Synagogue Rabbi Levi Notik said that they will overcome the situation.
“We’ll get through it,” Rabbi Notik said. “I want to thank law enforcement, they did a tremendous job. They were here very quick, had detectives here in minutes. Police already have one person in custody. It was incredible.”
Synagogue FREE is the headquarters of their entire network of synagogues. It was bought after their previous synagogue was burned down in 1993.The building also serves as a food bank where worshipers pack thousands of meals each month for those in need.
The Concerned Citizens League, a group of Jewish community members, said that the attack on FREE and Hanna Sacks was just the latest in a weekend of targeted antisemitic attacks:
- Windows broken at Tol Kuv, 2938 West Devon, on Saturday morning
- Windows broken at Tel Aviv Bakery, 2944 West Devon, on Saturday morning
- Window(s) broken at another synagogue near Devon and Monticello, on Saturday
UPDATE
Chicago Police arrested a person of interest after the F.R.E.E. Chabad synagogue in Chicago and a number of other Jewish institutions were vandalized over the weekend, local community members reported on Sunday night.
