(Photo courtesy Chabad Tucson)
Rabbi Yehuda Ceitlin discovered the words “End Apartheid Abolish Israel” spelled out in purple graffiti on the outer wall of his Chabad Tucson–Young Israel synagogue early in the morning on Tuesday, April 22.
Neither he nor the congregants who gathered for morning prayer noticed the graffiti when they drove into the synagogue’s parking lot, but just as they were putting on tefillin, a neighbor called to alert Ceitlin to the vandalism. They went outside to look and immediately felt a sense of heaviness.
“The morning prayers felt different after seeing what was on the wall,” Ceitlin told Jewish News. “We begin filled with hopes and dreams for the day, but when we discover such vile hate, it clutters the mind and derails the feelings. Our prayers felt different on Tuesday morning.”
Yet, faith is something the community could cling to in difficult times. Though Ceitlin believed the graffiti was an apparent attempt to intimidate the Jewish community, he was quick to say it would not work.
“We will not be intimidated,” he said.
This is the second vandalism incident at a Chabad synagogue in Tucson in the last few years. In 2021, a swastika and antisemitic slurs were spray-painted on the door of Chabad of River.
Just as happened then, within hours of the discovery of the graffiti, synagogue members and people in the neighborhood came out to assist with cleanup. By Tuesday afternoon, a community of about 30 Jews and non-Jews — including Ceitlin’s two young sons and a few other children — had formed to remove the graffiti by scraping, sanding and applying a fresh coat of paint. They prayed, put on tefillin and “felt empowered,” Ceitlin said.
“The wall is looking brighter than before. They even fixed a few cracks on the older wall,” he laughed.
A Christian woman named Veronica brought a bouquet of flowers early in the day to show her support.
“She told me how hurt she was by what happened and that it doesn’t represent Tucson,” Ceitlin said.
He put the flowers in front of the vandalized wall until Tuesday evening, when he brought them into the sanctuary. On Wednesday, they were “still blooming as an illustration of the genuine and wide support of the larger community,” he said.
Jewish Philanthropies of Southern Arizona President and CEO Hava Leipzig Holzhauer said, “Incidents of hate like this anti-Jewish hate not only impact the direct recipient but have a reverberating chilling effect throughout the community. No doubt this is the intention of the perpetrators. We are grateful for the outpouring of community support. We hope that all people of goodwill band together and speak out when hate strikes us — especially so close to home.”
Local politicians weighed in on social media about the vandalism.
“This hate is NOT welcomed in Tucson! I will continue to stand with my Jewish community. This is a synagogue NOT a political office. Shameful that it’s 2025 and we keep seeing this vile targeting of the Jewish community,” Arizona State Representative Alma Hernandez posted on X.
“A place of worship should never be a place to target. Shameful. We are with you,” Arizona State Representative Consuelo Hernandez posted on Facebook.
Both Hernandez sisters are Jewish and represent Tucson-area districts.
U.S. Representative Juan Ciscomani also publicly condemned the vandalism as did Daniel Hernandez and Adelita Grijalva, who have both announced their candidacies for the late Representative Raúl Grijalva’s seat.
“Many people from across the spectrum have reached out to us to express disgust at what they saw, support for the Jewish community and solidarity in our commitment to remain true to our heritage and not let antisemitism demoralize us,” Ceitlin said.
Tucson’s Congregation Chaverim also suffered from an incident of vandalism in May of 2021.
Ceitlin said that while crimes against the Jewish community are “a part of the Jewish story, Jewish history,” he views it as a distraction from Chabad’s purpose, which is “reaching out to people, teaching about the meaning of life and caring for each other.”
Chabad Tucson Executive Director Rabbi Yossie Shemtov called the latest incident “deeply concerning” and questioned the logic of calling out alleged discrimination of one community by promoting it against another.
Shemtov has led the congregation since 1984. The historic building, constructed in 1948, was originally the first Orthodox synagogue in Tucson, Congregation Young Israel. It would later merge with Chabad Tucson.
Antar Davidson, a member of Chabad Tucson–Young Israel, told reporters that he worried the vandalism might become a physical altercation.
“That’s what people do: A thought becomes speech and speech becomes deed,” he said.
The Tucson Police Department responded immediately to Ceitlin’s call, interviewed neighbors, and brought in the crime unit to collect evidence. Police are investigating Tuesday’s incident as a possible hate crime.
While the synagogue has cameras at the exits, the vandalized wall is in a blind spot.
In an April 25 action alert email from JPSA’s Center for Jewish Resilience, CJR Director Carina Bien-Willner said, “Our Jewish community security directors were informed and worked in constant contact with local law enforcement at TPD, ensuring this crime was elevated to a hate-motivated crime. We are looking into whether cameras in the area will help prevent and capture future crime.”
People should call 911 for any emergency situation that poses an immediate threat to life, safety, property, or the environment. They also should report any antisemitic incident — criminal or otherwise — to JPSA’s security directors by using the form here.
Ironically, the Chabad Tucson incident happened the same day the Anti-Defamation League released its Annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, which found that incidents of antisemitic assault and vandalism increased in Arizona in 2024, though antisemitic harassment overall had fallen.
“These numbers are a stark reminder that while there are some encouraging signs, like the drop in harassment, antisemitism is far from behind us,” said Sarah Kader, ADL Desert Deputy Regional Director. “We are particularly concerned about the rise in antisemitic vandalism and the return of assaults, which speak to a dangerous normalization of hate. Every incident is one too many, and Jewish communities across Arizona deserve to feel safe in their schools, neighborhoods, and places of worship.”
Reprinted from Jewish News (Phoenix). AJP Feature Writer Phyllis Braun contributed to this report.
