Swastika Painted On Exterior Of Temple Shalom
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Rabbi Joshua Lief had a few emotions running through him after a neighbor informed him Thursday morning that a swastika had been painted on the exterior of Temple Shalom, the Ohio Valley’s only synagogue. There was shock that someone would take the time to deface the building with a Nazi symbol. There was sadness that people would do such a thing.
“I’m hopeful this was an isolated incident,” Lief said Thursday afternoon. “I’m hopeful that this was someone just doing something stupid that they thought was perversely funny. It would be wonderful to discover that they didn’t mean it hatefully, though there’s sadly no other way for us to take it.”
The swastika was adopted by Germany’s Nazi Party and was a prominent symbol for the group during World War II. During that time, around six million Jews, about two-thirds of Europe’s Jewish population, were killed in the Holocaust by the Nazis.
Lief said Temple Shalom contacted the Wheeling Police Department, which came to the synagogue to investigate the situation.
“The police department was incredibly prompt and very diligent and thorough in their investigation,” Lief said. “They could not have been faster or nicer or better in any way. They were incredible.”
Following WPD’s investigation, Lief removed the swastika from the wall with steel wool.
“It is in fact a hate crime,” Lief said, “and, unfortunately, even if someone didn’t mean it hatefully, there’s not any room for us to take it any other way.
“That symbol has a meaning and actions have consequences,” he added. “The fact that someone took the time to deface our building with a symbol that is only identifiable as hateful means that there is at least one person out there whose behavior is grossly unkind, inappropriate and deplorable.”
Distressing Lief further was that Temple Shalom’s Shabbat service is 7 p.m. Friday, and he wanted to make sure his congregants would feel comfortable attending. An off-duty police officer has been hired for security, something Lief said is usually done only during larger occasions like the High Holy Days. He’s also welcoming those from the wider Wheeling community to attend and stand in solidarity with Temple Shalom’s congregants.
“Temple Shalom has been part of this community since 1849,” Lief said. “And we’re very proud to be part of a community that genuinely lives up to its nickname of ‘The Friendly City’ almost all of the time. And yet we know there’s still more work to be done to make our world a better place that it could yet be.
“Temple Shalom and the Jewish community have always been eager to work with our neighbors to make our future even better than our past,” he added.