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Rabbi Saperstein: "The vandalism including swastikas and graffiti reading 'Death to the Jews,' on the synagogue in Simferopol in the Crimea region this past Friday is unacceptable and serves as a bitter reminder that anti-Semitism continues to plague too many Jewish communities."
WASHINGTON, D.C., March 4, 2014 - In response to several anti-Semitic incidents in Ukraine, the site of ongoing social upheaval, Rabbi David Saperstein, Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, released the following statement:
"The events in Ukraine are deeply concerning for all who value human rights. We pray that the unrest will be resolved in a peaceful and democratic manner and without further loss of life. At the same time, we are also greatly troubled by several recent incidents of anti-Semitism that have shaken the Ukrainian Jewish community. The vandalism including swastikas and graffiti reading 'Death to the Jews' on the synagogue in Simferopol in the Crimea region this past Friday is unacceptable and serves as a bitter reminder that anti-Semitism continues to plague too many Jewish communities.
Our prayers are with the families of two men in Kiev who were brutally attacked while walking home from synagogues, to the members of the Giymat Rosa Synagogue in Zaporizhia, located 250 miles southeast of Kiev, that was firebombed a little over a week ago, and to all Jewish men, women, and children in Ukraine who fear being targets of anti-Semitism. We call on local and national leaders to delegitimize anti-Semitism and religious intolerance throughout the world and to take immediate and tangible steps to ensure the security of Ukraines Jewish communities."
