The Chicago Police Dept. is urging Jews across the US to take seriously the warnings of a Nazi “Day of Hate” planned for this coming Shabbat, February 25.
We enclose below the alert sent out in response to the CPD warning, by the Queens Shmira group. Similar alerts have been disseminated by many other Jewish community-watch societies.
The CPD also said that “at this time, there is no actionable intelligence,” adding: “We continue to actively monitor the situation.”
David Goldenberg, the Midwest regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, explained that a small, eastern Iowa antisemitic group last month designated Feb. 25 as a “day of hate,” and neo-Nazi, white supremacist, and other hate groups have since followed their lead and announced they, too, will participate.
Young Israel of Woodmere, NY, issued a statement to its members, saying: “As you may already be aware, various hate groups have been more aggressively organizing antisemitic activity throughout the country. As recently as this past weekend, antisemitic hate groups aggressively protested outside a Chabad in Orlando Florida. There are hate groups that have designated the weekend of February 25, 2023, as a ‘Day Of Hate’ that might target Jewish institutions.
“While our shul and community are not currently the target of any specific threat, we must continue to be vigilant in being aware of the threats that such groups pose. These group activities generally involve the distribution of fliers, small protests, and graffiti. Please be aware that our security team and local law enforcement are continually monitoring for such activity.”
The Edgewater Presbyterian Church tweeted on Thursday, enclosing a copy of the alert: “We stand with our Jewish neighbors—our sisters and brothers. We condemn antisemitism and hate in all its forms. please be vigilant on this so-called #DayofHate planned by extremists.”
By the way, #DayofHate was also the name chosen by Tennessee Democrats to describe a bill that was just passed by the state’s legislator, criminalizing drag shows.
Confusing? You bet.
I googled “day of hate tradition” and the first item Google spewed back was a reference to “Festivus,” a holiday celebrated by the father of “Seinfeld” character George Costanza (Jason Alexander), Frank Costanza (Jerry Stiller). The central feature of the holiday, celebrated on December 23, is for everyone at the table to tell the others how much they had disappointed them in the past year.
On a more practical note, Young Israel of Woodmere advised: “Should our shul or community become the target of such activity please note the following: a. If you feel in danger, call 911 any time of the day or night, even Shabbat and yom tov; b. If you encounter such activity, do not confront any individuals, but rather report such activity to 911, as well as our shul security team – the best advice is to not engage with such actors, but rather ignore them. They are looking for a confrontation and we don’t want to give them one; c. Please be assured that our shul has very experienced paid and volunteer security teams who can protect our shul and those who are within our building, but they have limited authority off our premises and thus the involvement of law enforcement is essential to resolving these situations.”
