Rabbi’s wife and children forced to leave
Chabad synagogue targeted by vandals
A Rabbi’s family who were by themselves while he was away have had to leave their home for their own safety after it was vandalised on Tuesday night.
The attack on the Chabad St Kilda synagogue where Rabbi Effy Block lives with his family saw the property defaced with messages including “Free Gaza” and “Jews Kill babies” on the front gate, door, and the wife’s car.
Speaking from New York where he’s at a conference, Rabbi Block described the incident as “shocking” and “appalling”.
He emphasised that despite the traumatic experience, the community’s response would be to display more Jewish pride.
“Our reaction is to go full force ahead with Jewish pride,” Rabbi Block told the AJN.
“We are not embarrassed or intimidated to be Jewish or to display our Jewishness, and we will continue going full throttle.”
The rabbi said this incident is taking place at a time of rising antisemitism in Australia, highlighting that his wife now does not feel safe in their home and has been forced to relocate with their children until his return.
“It’s unfathomable in Australia,” he said. “There’s no words to describe the disgrace and feelings of disappointment.”
“To come into someone’s home, to come literally up to the front door, to come inside the premises, and to write “Jews kill babies” … we don’t publicly tell people where our address is, but they had the audacity to come into [a] private home” Rabbi Block said.
Despite the traumatic experience, the rabbi’s wife, who wishes to remain anonymous, has remained resolute.
“While I felt shaken and shocked, I am also now inspired to continue our work promoting Judaism with pride,” she said.
“This is antisemitism pure and simple, but we will not back down.”
Rabbi Block applied six months ago for security grants from the Victorian government and the Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) to install additional security measures, including CCTV.
The AJN understands the ECAJ has not yet finalised its security spending in Victoria which is why Rabbi Block has not received a determination.
The local federal MP, Labor’s Josh Burns said, “To target a synagogue, Jewish community centre or the home of a rabbi is unacceptable and shocking. This needs to be called out for what it is – antisemitism, and it has no place in Australia.”
Dr Dvir Abramovich, Chairman of the Anti-Defamation Commission, condemned the attack as a “chilling reminder of how far some will go to intimidate and threaten the Jewish community”.
“To target a house of prayer, a rabbi and his family, is as cowardly and sinister as it gets.”
The ADC chairman believes the graffiti is more than mere vandalism.
“To spray such abhorrent antisemitic slurs is an attempt to resurrect the oldest and most toxic antisemitic blood libels that have fuelled persecution against Jewish people for centuries,” he said.
Dr Abramovich has asserted that the Jewish community would not be intimidated.
“You have failed,” he said of the perpetrators.
“The Jewish community is strong. We are resilient.”
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