Bondi Skate Park has been defaced with an enormous Nazi swastika striking despair into Australia’s largest Jewish community.
Emily Macdonald
The Wentworth Courier
March 4, 2021
UPDATE
Community leaders are speaking out to support the eastern suburbs Jewish community in the wake of the weekend’s Nazi graffiti hate crime.
Among them are Vaucluse MP Gabrielle Upton.
“I am appalled to see the Nazi swastika appear again at Bondi Beach,” Ms Upton said.
“It is an outright symbol of hatred that is incredibly hurtful to members of our Jewish community.
“We must end the offensive and deplorable use of the Nazi swastika and other symbols including the flag now.”
UPDATE
Waverley Council is working with police to zero in on who is responsible for defacing a prominent Bondi location with a swastika.
A spokeswoman for Waverley council said the offending Nazi symbol has already been scrubbed clean from the skate park.
“Waverley council is appalled that a racist message was graffitied onto the Bondi Beach Skate Park bowl sometime on Saturday evening,” the spokeswoman said.
“We understand the extreme distress, anguish, fear and disgust that racial and derogatory language can elicit especially within Australia’s multicultural community and amongst all fair-minded people.
“A senior council ranger saw the graffiti on Sunday morning and immediately reported it to Council‘s cleaning crew who removed it straight away.
“Council is reviewing surveillance footage and any relevant footage will be provided to police.”
The council has urged locals to report any further incidents of hate crime graffiti immediately.
“Racism has no place in Waverley and we condemn this act of vandalism in the strongest terms,” the spokeswoman said.
Anyone with information should contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or crimestoppers.com.au
Graffiti can also be reported to council on 9083 8000 or via the Snap Send Solve app so that it can removed as quickly as possible.
EARLIER
There are fears Bondi is becoming a hot spot for race hate after vile graffiti was smeared across a popular community park.
Bondi Skate Park has been defaced with an enormous Nazi swastika striking despair into Australia’s largest Jewish community.
The black spray painted swastika takes up almost the entirety of the skateboard bowl and was believed to have been painted over the weekend.
NSW Jewish Board of Deputies CEO Vic Alhadeff condemned the vile act and called for more CCTV to help prevent further attacks.
Thousands of Jewish people call the eastern suburbs home, including one in eight Bondi residents, and they include numerous holocaust survivors.
The area has been repeatedly targeted by anti-Semitic graffiti in recent years.
“It’s no coincidence that those responsible for this reprehensible act of vandalism chose to do it in Bondi Beach,” Mr Alhadeff said.
“It’s not the first time that Nazi swastikas have been smeared in the area, and it would certainly be helpful for local authorities to install CCTV cameras along the beachfront to serve as a deterrence to future offensive behaviour.
“Not only does the swastika represent the ultimate in race hatred, with the Nazis responsible for the murder of six million Jews, but 27,000 Australian Diggers lost their lives fighting the Nazi regime. There is no place for this terrible symbol in our society.”
Murals along Bondi’s promenade were defaced with swastikas twice in 2019.
The hate crime comes as Chabad Bondi prepare to auction their old synagogue on O’Brien St to finance the completion of their new place of worship at the old tennis courts site on Wellington St.
Mr Alhadeff said there was no suggestion to eastern European Chabad Bondi community had been specifically targeted.
“I wouldn’t connect this latest incident to any specific development. There is no logic in bigotry, and those who engage in this sort of scurrilous conduct will always contrive a reason,” Mr Alhadeff said.
