A series of flyers stating that “every aspect of the COVID agenda is Jewish” were found in Beverly Hills on November 28.
According to the Beverly Hills Police Department, the police found that the flyers were “enclosed in plastic bags” and “distributed to homes in several blocks in the northeast area of the City.” They are investigating the matter.
LAist linked to a tweet showing the flyer in full.
Today, in one of the only Jewish-majority cities outside of Israel, this screed was distributed on residents’ doorsteps. The world’s oldest extant form of racism rears its ugly head on Erev Chanukah. The response to this hatred is a simple, but unmistakable: “Am Yisrael Chai.” pic.twitter.com/H2FG4hwAS9
— John Mirisch (@JohnMirisch) November 28, 2021
Beverly Hills Mayor Robert Wunderlich said that the flyers “were connecting Jews with the spread of the COVID pandemic and falsely trying to create the association that Jews are responsible.”
Beverly Hills Mayor Robert Wunderlich said that the flyers “were connecting Jews with the spread of the COVID pandemic and falsely trying to create the association that Jews are responsible.” He also said that all hate crimes are “unacceptable” but that the flyers are “particularly egregious it is during this time of year, when it should be the community coming together.”
Representative Ted Lieu (D-CA) also denounced the flyers in a statement. “I am disgusted by the anti-Semitic flyers distributed in Beverly Hills and I urge law enforcement to do everything they can to find the culprit,” he said. “The fact that these flyers were distributed at a time when many Jewish families in our district are celebrating Hannukah is especially despicable. As a Co-Chair of the Bipartisan Anti-Semitism Task Force, I am committed to rooting out the kind of intolerance and bigotry that leads to these kinds of hateful acts, and will continue to work with local Jewish leaders, elected officials and law enforcement to address anti-Semitism in our community.”
Anti-Defamation League Los Angeles tweeted, “Outrageous to see antisemitic fliers dropped in Beverly Hills, especially on 1st night of #Hannukah. @LA_ADL has engaged @BeverlyHillsPD to address the situation. The persistence of this hatred is why @ADL is committed to #ShineALight on #antisemitism.”
Outrageous to see antisemitic fliers dropped in Beverly Hills, especially on 1st night of #Hannukah. @LA_ADL has engaged @BeverlyHillsPD to address the situation. The persistence of this hatred is why @ADL is committed to #ShineALight on #antisemitism. https://t.co/DLdSYJBTym
— ADL Southern California (@ADLSoCal) November 29, 2021
American Jewish Committee Los Angeles Regional Director Richard S. Hirschhaut tweeted that the flyers were a “disturbing act of antisemitic hate speech targeting Beverly Hills residents on the eve of Hanukkah.” He lauded Lieu, Wunderlich and the police for their statements and actions on the matter. “Bigotry is indivisible and this is exactly how we push back against the haters.”
A disturbing act of antisemitic hate speech targeting Beverly Hills residents on the eve of Hanukkah. #AJCLA applauds @BeverlyHillsPD and @CityofBevHills Mayor Robert Wunderlich for their swift clean-up, condemnation, and reassurance to all that such hate is unwelcome in BH. https://t.co/DFg9QRy6HL
— Rick Hirschhaut (@rickhirschhaut) November 29, 2021
Grateful to @RepTedLieu for adding his voice to the chorus of condemnation surrounding this cowardly act. Bigotry is indivisible and this is exactly how we push back against the haters. https://t.co/31pY9GDxI6
— Rick Hirschhaut (@rickhirschhaut) November 30, 2021
NBC Los Angeles reported that Chabad California West Coast Director Rabbi Shlomo Cunin led a public menorah lighting at Beverly Hills City Hall on November 29 as a response to the flyers. During the lighting, he said that “the message of Hanukkah” is that “a little bit of light, with a lot of joy, dispels tons and tons of darkness.”
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