Jewish graves desecrated with swastikas spark anger, tears
The vandal who desecrated Jewish graves in Waukegan with swastikas remained unidentified and at large on Tuesday, but the latest display of antisemitism sparked a wide range of emotions, from anger to tears to outrage - even sympathy for the hateful culprit.
"He's got to be in a lot of pain. I feel sorry for him, or them, for having this much hate in their heart," Alan Friedlander said after checking on his parents' headstones at the Congregation Am Echod Jewish Cemetery, 3050 Grand Ave. in the north suburb.
Friedlander's parents' graves had not been disturbed, but at least 39 others were found desecrated with red paint about 8 a.m. Monday, according to Waukegan police.
Sixteen had been defaced with the Nazi symbol, and another 23 were covered in other graffiti, police said.