City leaders gather to condemn spike in antisemitic crimes
A number of city leaders and law enforcement officials gathered on Friday to condemn a disturbing spike in antisemitic crimes throughout Los Angeles County.
"Make no mistake, if you commit a hate crime in this city, we will join with every law enforcement agency and every prosecutor possible to hold that individual responsible," said LAPD Chief Michel Moore.
Moore was joined by Rabbis Abraham Cooper and Marvin Hier from the Simon Wiesenthal Center, FBI leaders and interfaith leaders, all of whom stood in solidarity with the Jewish community during a press conference at the Museum of Tolerance near Beverly Hills.
"What we've been experiencing and hearing from members of the Jewish community from coast to coast is, they feel the threats. The reaction is not so much fear but pure anger and a sense of helplessness," Rabbi Cooper said.
In recent weeks, antisemitic fliers have been distributed throughout several neighborhoods, including Beverly Hills, Brentwood and Westwood, just 24 hours after demonstrators held a sign over the 405 Freeway stating, "Kanye was right about the Jews."
This comes on the heels of a recent series of tirades that the rapper Kanye West, now legally known as Ye, has gone on, targeting the Jewish community.
Chief Moore indicated that the same group is responsible for both the fliers and the banner over the 405 Freeway, where members of the group could be seen performing the Nazi salute.
"We're working with our affiliated law enforcement agencies in the region of Southern California to ensure they're aware of their existence and that they're monitoring their actions there should they be committing crime," he said.
He also noted that hate crimes against the Jewish community are up 9% since last year, and up 77% since 2020 in Los Angeles.
"Let's fight," said Rabbi Hier. "Let's fight the haters. Let them know that if they think the United States of America, the greatest democracy ever, that we're gonna allow to go back to the time of Fascism, back to the time of 1933 to 45, it will never happen."
The LAPD and FBI are working together to ensure the safety of the Jewish community.
