Assembly Member Dan Rosenthal looks at a fence in Forest Hills targeted by anti-Semitic vandals Wednesday (Image provided by Assembly Member Dan Rosenthal)
Dec. 16, 2020 By Michael Dorgan
Anti-Semitic graffiti was scrawled across a fence in Forest Hills last night– alarming elected officials and residents.
The hateful graffiti was plastered across a garden fence outside a house on the Grand Central Parkway Service road between 68th Road and 68th Drive, according to Assembly Member Dan Rosenthal.
The scrawl reads: “F***ing Jewish b***hes in the ***hole is the best.”
Five panels of the white fence were sprayed with black paint, according to Rosenthal who condemned the incident.
“This kind of hate isn’t welcome here,” Rosenthal told the Queens Post. “Queens is a diverse borough and it is extremely disturbing that somebody would not want to make people feel welcome here.”
Rosenthal said that the fence is highly visible and faces a busy roadway. He said that a constituent came across the hateful message this morning and alerted his office.
The lawmaker said that he called the police who immediately responded to the scene.
The police told the Queens Post that the NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force is now investigating the incident as a “possible bias incident.” It is unclear as to who is responsible for the damage, police said.
Rosenthal, who represents District 27, said the incident took place in a heavily Jewish area although the homeowner is not of that faith. The owner, however, was stunned by the incident, Rosenthal said.
Rosenthal posted a picture of himself at the fence on social media Wednesday and called for people to reject this type of behavior.
“There is no room for hate [in] our neighborhood. There is no tolerance for [the] desecration of property,” he wrote.
“We must stand up against repugnant actions such as this that occurred in Forest Hills.”
There is no room for hate our neighborhood. There is no tolerance for desecration of property. We must stand up against repugnant actions such as this that occured in Forest Hills. @NYPD112Pct @NYPDHateCrimes pic.twitter.com/aaNK1q9u3N
— Daniel Rosenthal (@DanRosenthalNYC) December 16, 2020
The hateful scrawl was also condemned by Queens Borough President Donovan Richards.
“This sickening display of anti-Semitism has no place in The World’s Borough, especially as our Jewish brothers and sisters in Forest Hills and across Queens rejoice during the holy week of Chanukah,” Richards said.
“This intolerable act of vandalism will not go unpunished, and our office is working closely with the NYPD, the NYC Commission on Human Rights and the NYC Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes to ensure those responsible are held accountable for their shameful, unacceptable act of hate,” Richards added.
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