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Thursday, December 27, 2012

Brooklyn Religious Institutions Under Attack: A Recent History

Posted by on Thu, Dec 27, 2012 at 12:00 PM

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Just before Christmas, The Church of St. Luke and St. Matthew in Clinton Hill caught fire, suffering damage to its doors, entryway, and some old chairs, the Voice reports. The church was used by Occupy Sandy volunteers as a headquarters and distribution hub; members were inside at the time but safely escaped. Police suspect arson and are investigating. It's not the only recent case of an assault on a religious institution in Brooklyn; here are several others. [photo]

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In March, vandals tipped over statues worshiping at the base of a statue of the Virgin Mary in front of the Visitation Academy in Bay Ridge, a Catholic school. They also decapitated a stone lamb. A local paper, The Home Reporter, questioned parents about whether they were afraid or if the attack might have been a hate crime, but they largely dismissed such concerns. [photo]

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In February, vandals scrawled the outlines of Kiss makeup on the faces of statues of Mary and the baby Jesus at Our Lady of Mount Carmel church in Williamsburg, the Brooklyn Paper reported. They also knocked over another statue and wrote "Mykee" on Jesus' robe. "We don’t know if it is an act of anger, grief, vandalism or stupidity,” the church's pastor told the paper. [photo]

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In June, six locations in Borough Park were vandalized with swastikas, including "businesses and places of religious observance [and] a synagogue," the New York Press reported. "This despicable act of anti-Semitism pains our community, but brings us together," Councilmember Brad Lander said at the time. "At times like this, we must unite with communities across New York to keep our city a tolerant, welcoming home." [photo]

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In November 2011, three cars were burned and anti-Semitic graffiti scrawled on benches and a van in Midwood. But within two months, police said they suspected the attack was an insurance scam and not a hate crime, Gothamist reported. At the time, however, Councilmember Dov Hikind, Councilmember David Greenfield, State Senator Eric Adams, Congressmember Bob Turner, Mayor Bloomberg, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and District Attorney Charles Hynes all spoke out passionately against this "horrific thing." [photo]

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In May of 2011, after bin Laden had been killed, someone spray painted "he is dead" with smiley faces on the walls surrounding a construction site of a mosque in Sheepshead Bay that had been riling up neighbors. [photo]

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About The Author

Henry Stewart

Henry Stewart
Bio:
 Henry Stewart is the Culture Editor at The L Magazine and some kind of editor at Brooklyn Magazine. He has always lived in Brooklyn.

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