Chicago hall, playground defaced with antisemitic grafitti, ADL opposes Mamdani plan

Deerfield village hall in suburban Chicago was defaced with antisemitic graffiti, which was quickly removed. A swastika was also spray-painted on a playground slide in nearby Highland Park. The ADL sharply criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's newly released plan to combat antisemitism, accusing him of not treating the issue as an emergency. The ADL documented hundreds of antisemitic incidents in New York City since Mamdani took office, nearly 40% of which were related to Israel, and criticized him for discarding the IHRA definition.

Deerfield village hall in suburban Chicago was defaced overnight with antisemitic graffiti, local officials announced. The graffiti was discovered the next morning and quickly removed, and local police opened an investigation. Officials said Deerfield unequivocally condemns all acts of antisemitism and stands in solidarity with the Jewish community. The incident comes less than a week after a similar incident in nearby Highland Park, where unidentified individuals spray-painted a swastika on a playground slide at Devonshire Park. Park employees removed the symbol, and Highland Park police opened an investigation. Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering said the incident occurred at a particularly sensitive time for the Jewish community, between the High Holy Days and preparations for Sukkot. Separately, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) sharply criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's newly released plan to combat antisemitism. The ADL said Mamdani's strategy confirms he does not treat the hatred facing Jewish New Yorkers as an emergency and refuses to recognize the different forms it takes. The ADL documented hundreds of antisemitic incidents in New York City since Mamdani took office, nearly 40% of which were related to Israel. It criticized him for throwing out the IHRA definition on his first day in office and said his strategy still offers no alternative definition.