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Hanukkah, also known as the Festival of Lights, is a "Jewish festival commemorating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire". It is celebrated by the lighting of a candle on each day of the festival, and was observed this year from Friday the 11th of December to Friday the 18th of December.
This year, like many others, has seen a worrying rise in the number of cases of antisemitism all around the world. While some of the most reported incidents have happened throughout Hannukah, violence and harassment have persisted all year round.
Just one recent attack was that of a Jewish man being run over by a car at a Menorah lighting; the driver continued to yell slurs at the majority of those in attendance while the attack unfolded. The incident, which happened in Lexington, Kentucky, is currently being investigated by the police. It is alleged to have happened as the congregation was preparing to light the menorah to celebrate the third night of Hanukkah at the University of Kentucky’s Jewish Student Centre. One witness to the incident recalls, "A car pulled up, nearly hitting the volunteer camera crew and the driver began yelling abusive language. A community member who was assisting in the lighting heroically stepped between the assailant and the Chabad house as several children were in the front room." The victim was transported to hospital with non-life threatening injuries, and insisted on waiting for the menorah to be lit before allowing himself to be taken to hospital. Breanna Angel, Lexington Police District’s spokesperson, says the investigation into the incident is still ongoing.
Another such attack on the Jewish community happened to a Long Island Jewish school when their website was hacked, and the Swastika became plastered all over the pages of their website. The North Shore Hebrew Academy High School’s homepage was flooded with Nazi imagery and clips of marching SS guards, according to the footage posted on Twitter. A picture of Adolf Hitler was also posted on a page that called the school the ‘North Shore Concentration Camp’. Headmaster Daniel Vitow told the New York Post: "We are aware of the situation and are actively working with law enforcement." Nassau police department confirm that they are working with the school and conducting an investigation, but currently don't have any additional information.
In Ukraine’s capital, a Hanukkah menorah was pulled down, as the perpetrator posted a video of the attack online. He used the caption "Ukrainians we are the power, Jews to the graves" to accompany the video. In his post, Andriy Rachok said he wanted to “show everyone how to treat foreigners who are taking over the country”. Members of the United Jewish Community of Ukraine said Rachok returned later in the day to once again pull down the menorah, only to find it had been welded to the ground to prevent a repeat. They called on the authorities to investigate the act as a hate crime, however it is currently unclear whether the police are actively conducting an investigation at this time.
The Anne Frank Memorial in Boise, Idaho was also vandalized with nine Swastika stickers and the words "we are everywhere." This is the second time this memorial was vandalized; in 2017, the memorial sustained $20,000 worth of damages after four consecutive nights of antisemitic graffiti meant the memorial had to be stripped of the spray paint. Dan Prizing, head of the Wassmuth Centre for Human Rights described the attack as a ‘stab in the heart’ and said that what made the incident so sad was the ‘blatancy of where they (the stickers) were placed, how they were placed and the message they were conveying’.
At a Davenport Synagogue, the words ‘John 8:44’ were written near the entrance of Temple Emanuel, with Rabbi Linda Berenthal describing the biblical citation as "hateful language in this context". She says the citation accuses Jews of being the spawn of Satan, and believes that antisemitism continues to be a US-wide problem. Berenthal says, “This is not what we wanted for Hanukkah. We know that the great majority of the people in the Quad Cities stand together against all acts of hate. We know that our Christian and Muslim friends, and all of our ethical atheist friends, we know that the community stands with us against this. But it’s still deeply upsetting. Oddly appropriate to the holiday but in a painful way.” Davenport police are conducting an investigation and urge anyone with any information they think may be relevant to contact officials or submit a tip through Crimestoppers online.
The number of antisemitic hate crimes continues to rise. 2019 saw the most antisemitic attacks in at least 40 years according to the Anti-Defamation League, as the 2107 incidents reported last year reflect a 12% increase from the number of similar incidents in 2018. This is the highest number of attacks since the ADL began tallying incidents in 1979. A study released by ADL last year found that the majority of American Jews have witnessed or experienced antisemitism in the past five years, and nearly two-thirds say they’re less safe than they were a decade ago. As the report covers 2019, it does not refer to the shift in how antisemitism has manifested during the coronavirus pandemic. Long-lasting stay-at-home orders could drive down the number of antisemitic encounters, but the ADL and others who monitor antisemitism say the pandemic could contribute to new forms of hate, especially online.
The #nospaceforjewhate has become a very popular trend on Instagram and other social networking sites. Users create posts, advertising their accounts as a safe space for the Jewish community, while encouraging followers to actively take a stand against antisemitism, and educate themselves about the negative effects of hate crimes on the Jewish community.
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