A ‘terrible desecration’: Antisemitic graffiti painted outside Vernon Hills synagogue
Members of a Jewish congregation in Vernon Hills are saddened and outraged following the discovery of antisemitic graffiti at the synagogue — but they’re pledging to fight the hateful message with love.
A retaining wall near the parking lot at Congregation Or Shalom, 21 Hawthorn Parkway, was vandalized about 8:30 p.m. Sunday night. Someone used spray paint to draw a lewd symbol and write a short phrase targeting Jews, Vernon Hills police said.
The graffiti, which faced the synagogue, was discovered Tuesday morning by an employee arriving for work, Rabbi Ari Margolis said. It was being removed Wednesday in a laborious process.
Acts of antisemitism have been on the rise across the U.S. and globally in recent years, with a big spike coming after the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack in Israel and the start of the war in Gaza, multiple studies have shown.
“We have known for a while now, with the state of the world, that an incident like this was a matter of ‘when’ and not a matter of ‘if,’” Margolis said.
The vandalism prompted emotional reactions from current and former congregation members such as Rabbi Ilana Greenfield Baden, whose parents were among Congregation Or Shalom’s founders in 1977. Baden, who grew up in Libertyville and now serves a congregation in Las Vegas, called the graffiti an “ugly display of hatred.”
“My heart breaks for this terrible desecration,” she said.
Congregation member and religious schoolteacher Mariana Buchman said the vandal struck just days before Or Shalom students were scheduled to begin classes for the new school year.
“The timing is horrendous for us — not that there is ever a good time for hate,” Buchman said in an email.
The vandalism was captured on security video. Vernon Hills police are “aggressively pursuing leads” in their effort to identify the vandal, according to a department news release.
“Regardless of the particular target, hate crimes are an attack on our entire community,” Vernon Hills Police Chief Patrick L. Kreis said in the release. “Conduct of this kind has no place in Vernon Hills, and the Police Department will work diligently to identify and charge any offender.”
Rebecca Weininger, senior regional director for the Anti-Defamation League Midwest, said her organization is “appalled and deeply saddened” by the vandalism. She noted the crime occurred just weeks before the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur holidays, the holiest of the Jewish faith.
“We remain in close contact with the synagogue’s leadership, local law enforcement and community partners to ensure those responsible are brought to justice and to support healing for the congregation,” Weininger said in an email.
Margolis said he aims to turn the situation into a blessing by collecting messages of support from other religious organizations and sharing them with his congregants. He said he hopes they will show “that we are not alone.”
Additionally, congregation members intend to cover the wall that was vandalized with a mural, Margolis said. “We want to choose to face hate with love and with hope,” he said.
Security personnel will be increased at the synagogue, especially during gatherings, Margolis said.
Anyone with information about the graffiti can email police at pdtips@vhills.org.