Antisemitic graffiti messages in Canter’s Deli parking lot investigated as a hate crime

Canter's Deli graffiti suspected hate crime

The long-standing Jewish deli was vandalized with anti-semitic language.

LOS ANGELES - Police in Los Angeles' Beverly Grove neighborhood are investigating a potential hate crime after several antisemitic messages were sprayed on walls in the parking lot of Canter's Deli.

The Los Angeles Police Department was called out to the restaurant in the 400 block of N. Fairfax Ave. just after 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, for reports that the hateful messages had been sprayed on walls.

Antisemitic graffiti at Canter's Deli

Graffiti sprayed in the parking lot of Canter's Deli in Beverly Grove of Los Angeles is being investigated as a hate crime. The graffiti includes messages like "Free Gaza," "How many died in the name of greed" and "Israel's only religion is capitalism."

A post on X shared by the Anti-Defamation League of California showed the graffiti which included messages like "Free Gaza," "How many dead in the name of greed," and "Israel's only religion is capitalism" painted underneath a mural of Jewish history.

"Vandalising and targeting synagogues, Jewish neighborhoods and a mural about local Jewish history on the wall of the iconic Canter's Deli on Fairfax Boulevard is heinous and antisemitic," Jeffrey Abrams, Regional Director of ADL Los Angeles, said in a post on X.

The vandalism is just the latest example of heightened tensions, both in Los Angeles and countrywide, in the wake of Hamas' attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and the subsequent war in the Middle East.

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Both the Anti-Defamation League and the Council on American-Islamic Relations saw increases in harassment in the weeks following the attack, many involving violence or threats against protesters at rallies in support of Israel or in support of Palestinians. From Oct. 7 to Oct. 24, for example, the Council on American-Islamic Relations received more than 750 reports of bias-related acts. The national headquarters had 110 direct reports during that period, compared to 63 for all of August.

"We will pursue those responsible for this unacceptable rash of hate and hold them fully accountable," said LA Mayor Karen Bass in a statement. "We will continue to collaborate with the Los Angeles Police Department to not only respond to these anti-Semitic acts but also to prevent these acts of hate from occurring in the first place. The people of Los Angeles stand firmly unified against these acts."

In Studio City, a family was recently woken up in the middle of the night, to find a man had broken into their house, allegedly threatening to kill them and yelling "Free Palestine" as he was being arrested. And in Manhattan Beach, a grade school student allegedly told multiple Jewish classmates that "all Israelis and Jews should be killed."

Meanwhile, the graffiti outside Canter's Deli has since been covered. Anyone with information on the crime was asked to contact police.