Antisemitic graffiti found around Forest Hills, Rego Park
/
Antisemitic graffiti was found across the Queens neighborhoods of Forest Hills and Rego Park on Monday morning, including in front of the Rego Park Jewish Center and a Forest Hills synagogue. Photo via Congressmember Grace Meng/X
By Ryan Schwach
Antisemitic graffiti was found at several locations in Queens, including the Rego Park Jewish Center and a synagogue in Forest Hills, on Monday morning.
Swastikas, the word “Hitler” and other antisemitic messages were spray painted on several buildings and homes in the Queens neighborhoods, prompting outcry from local officials who are demanding the perpetrators be found.
Local officials say they believe four individuals may be responsible for the graffiti littered in at least five locations in the area, including two homes and a car in Forest Hills, the Jewish Center and Congregation Machane Chodosh.
The Rego Park Jewish Center and the synagogue are less than a mile from each other, and also within a mile of another instance of antisemitic graffiti discovered three years ago.
One of the swastikas found on Monday was scribbled over a plaque dedicated to the survivors of Kristallnacht.
Local officials condemned the graffiti in a joint statement.
“The recent string of targeted antisemitic graffiti in Forest Hills and Rego Park, including incidents directed at houses of worship, Jewish educational and early childhood centers, and private homes, is reprehensible and will not be tolerated,” said Congressmember Grace Meng, Council Speaker Julie Menin, Senators Joseph Addabbo and Leroy Comrie, Assemblymembers Sam Berger and Andrew Hevesi, and Councilmembers Lynn Schulman and Phil Wong. “This is not something to be dismissed or handled on a so called case by case basis. This is hate plain and simple. The continued rise in attacks against Jewish New Yorkers is unacceptable and has reached a critical point. Our communities deserve action, accountability, and protection.”
Swastikas were found outside a synagogue in Forest Hills on Monday, partially over a plaque honoring survivors of Kristallnacht. City Council Speaker Julie Menin/X
“We stand united in condemning these acts and in our commitment to ensuring the safety and dignity of every resident,” the officials added. “Antisemitism has no place here, and we will meet it with resolve and zero tolerance.”
Mayor Zohran Mamdani also issued a statement, and said the NYPD Hate Crimes Unit is investigating the incidents.
“I am horrified and angered by the swastikas painted on homes and a synagogue in Forest Hills, including on a plaque honoring survivors of Kristallnacht,” the mayor said on X. “This is not just vandalism — it is a deliberate act of antisemitic hatred meant to instill fear. There is no place for antisemitism in Queens or anywhere in our city. I stand in solidarity with our Jewish neighbors. Their safety, dignity, and belonging are non-negotiable.”
Wong and Schulman visited the locations where graffiti was found, as did Meng and Menin.
Queens Borough President Donovan Richards called the act “heinous.”
The NYPD said that there have been no arrests as of Monday afternoon, and the investigation remains ongoing.
This is not the first time the heavily Jewish neighborhoods of Forest Hills and Rego Park have been the site of antisemitic graffiti.
In 2023, swastikas were drawn at Stephen A. Halsey Junior High School 157 on 102nd Street, and another was drawn in Forest Hills at 110-11 Queens Blvd..
The school is also less than a mile from the Rego Park Jewish Center.
