‘If they want to intimidate us it’s not going to happen’: Synagogue stands together after antisemitic graffiti

WARNING: This story contains references to and images of antisemitic symbols.

A Jewish congregation in Winnipeg came together for Sabbath in a show of strength and resilience a day after their synagogue was vandalized with antisemitic graffiti, including a slew of swastikas.

“The intention was to intimidate and frighten people. Maybe put people in a position where they didn’t want to show up,” said Rena Secter Elbaze, executive director of the Congregation Shaarey Zedek.

“Luckily people are resilient … if they want to intimidate us, it’s not going to happen.” 

The synagogue on Wellington Crescent, which also operates a childcare centre, was targeted early Friday morning, Elbaze said. 

A person wearing a hoodie was recorded on video surveillance cameras at the front of the building at around 4:30 a.m. 

Elbaze said swastikas were painted on window panes that were inserted in the building’s wooden doorway and other antisemitic graffiti, including the word “hate,” was sprayed on a marble facade.

The synagogue has dealt with a handful of antisemitic graffiti incidents in the past, including on garbage bins or around the building’s perimeter, but Elbaze said the front hadn’t been defaced until this week. 

“It was meant to damage and to be disrespectful,” she said. “I feel saddened, I feel shocked … I don’t like to be made to feel that we don’t belong here.” 

A spokesperson for Winnipeg police told CBC News officers received a report of graffiti on a building in Wellington Crescent and the force’s Major Crimes Unit is investigating the incident. 

Police said they aren’t aware of any similar incidents in Winnipeg in recent days, but Elbaze said the graffiti is part of a larger trend of antisemitism growing in Canada. 

“Even if this turns out only to be an isolated attack, we still have to stop it. We still have to send the message that this is not allowed here.”

Elbaze said maintenance crews at the building managed to clean the graffiti from the windows but some of the paint seeped in the pores of the marble and it is going to take longer to remove it completely.

The incident happened just hours before the start of Sabbath, a weekly day of rest and worship in Judaism. 

Carnie Shalom Rose, the synagogue’s senior rabbi, told CBC News a large crowd showed up to the congregation on Saturday for the day of prayer — a show of resilience and strength. 

“People felt empowered to come to be present and to make the statement that we will not be pushed away from the expressions of our connection to the divine,” he said. “I was really heartened by all of that.” 

While the graffiti was unfortunate and troubling, the rabbi said it has also been heartening to see the support from those outside the congregation. Among the crowd on Saturday were people from other faiths, a sign of support welcomed by the congregation, Rose said. 

“You learn that in the moments of crisis, and these moments of crisis remind us that we have lots and lots and lots of friends here,” he said. 

The congregation has also been in touch with the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) who informed the synagogue that all levels of government have been made aware of the situation. 

CIJA condemned the graffiti in a social media post, referring to it as a “vile anti-Jewish hate crime” and asking authorities to hold those responsible accountable. 

Efforts to ensure Jews can live in a safe and accepting society are still needed, but it is also important to remember that with rare exceptions the community has enjoyed peace in Canada, Rose said.

Last month 15 people died in Sydney, Australia after two gunmen opened fire in the city’s Bondi Beach where hundreds gathered to celebrate Hanukkah. 

“It’s not that we’re unaware of the successive events that have transpired. We feel them very acutely,” he said. 

“But we also know that we have also experienced exactly the opposite: the love of the Jewish people, the respect for the Jewish people, the concern for the Jewish people …  I think that overrides all of the negativity that we are experiencing.”