New York, NY, December 14, 2009 … The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today condemned the desecration of two menorahs in Suffolk County over the weekend, the latest in a series of menorah vandalisms on Long Island in recent weeks.

According to authorities, a menorah at the entrance of Raynor Beach County Park in Ronkonkoma was broken and left on the ground, and a second menorah that had been missing from the Chabad of Stony Brook in Setauket, was discovered at the bottom of a pond.

Previously, on December 4, surveillance cameras captured vandals in Holbrook bringing an 11-foot menorah to the ground.

Ron Meier, ADL New York Regional Director, issued the following statement:

The recent desecrations of menorahs on Long Island are brazen acts of anti-Semitism.  Menorahs are symbols of the Jewish faith, and their desecration carries with it an underlying message of hate.

 

As Jews come together to celebrate Hanukkah, it is disgraceful that there are those who would seek to tarnish the holiday by taking out their baseless hatred on Jewish objects.  These are not just attacks against symbols of Judaism, but attacks against the entire community.

 

We applaud the Suffolk County Police Department and its hate crimes unit for acting decisively to investigate these incidents, and look forward to seeing the vandals prosecuted.