CAMBRIDGE, MASS. (WHDH) - People walking around Harvard Square recently noticed some shocking stickers placed on a number of poles and signs.
Police and local organizations are condemning hate, just the latest incident the Jewish community in Cambridge has had to deal with.
Cambridge police are investigating the placement of stickers showing the Israeli flag with a swastika replacing the Star of David and the message “Stop Funding Israeli Terrorism”.
“We’ve been seeing calls from different groups around Harvard and the country to say, ‘Now is the time to escalate’ and ‘they want to bring the war home’,” said Harvard Hillel Executive Director Jason Rubenstein. “To see that come into physical form just a few feet from our building where there are hundreds of students every day, makes us concerned about where this is going next.”
Rubenstein said after a peaceful start to the school year, incidents of anti-Semitism have escalated since the anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel.
“Last week there was vandalism in Harvard Yard of red paint spilled on the John Harvard statue and broken windows,” Rubenstein said. “We don’t know who’s doing these things or what their playbook is or if they have one, but there’s a sense of unpredictably that’s building with each incident.”
The Anti-Defamation League’s New England chapter responded to this incident, saying in part:
“We are aware that law enforcement is investigating apparent anti-Semitic vandalism at Harvard. We urge a thorough investigation and for those responsible to be held accountable. Jewish students, like all students, deserve to feel safe on campus.”
Rubenstein said amid this latest act, the Jewish community will continue to stand up to the violence.
“The community’s been through a lot,” he said. “We’ve come together, we’ve become stronger and we know we can create something beautiful that nobody can take away from us.”
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