PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania — A “We Stand for Israel” flag sat blowing in the wind in front of a Central Northside home, with the blue and white banner serving as a stark contrast to the antisemitic graffiti spray-painted along the brick sidewalk in front of the same home. The graffiti spelled out the Nazi rallying cry, “For Blood and Soil.”
The vandalizing, which occurred early Sunday morning and was caught by the family’s Ring camera, is part of a growing aggressive trend of intimidation and threats that Jewish families across the country, as well as students attending what once were considered the nation’s best institutions of higher learning, have been experiencing since the massacre of Jews in Israel on Oct. 7.
The city controller, Rachael Heisler, along with other community members, immediately sprang into action, covering the spray-painted message with heavy-duty construction paper and duct tape until the city works department could remove it Monday afternoon.
During Germany’s Nazi days, that “blood and soil” phrase was used and spray-painted across Europe to promote the fantasy of a pure race and the elimination of Jews.
The woman who lives in the home with her husband and school-aged children told KDKA News what happened was “bone-chilling” and that “it’s absolutely something that hits you viscerally.”
It marked the fourth time in the past couple of weeks that her home had been vandalized. Images that appear to be from the war in Gaza were posted to her front door. She said she fears for her family’s safety.
Last week, the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh said it had received numerous threats ahead of Passover, which began Monday evening. The FBI said in a statement it is aware of what happened and is on alert for threats targeting the Jewish community.
At Ivy League universities Columbia, Yale, and Harvard, antisemitic protests raged, and classes at Columbia were moved online rather than in person. Columbia President Minouche Shafik announced the temporary in-person ban on X at 1 a.m., saying the extraordinary move was to “de-escalate the rancor and give us all a chance to consider next steps.”
Meanwhile, Shai Davidai, an assistant professor at Columbia Business School, said on X his ID had been “deactivated,” with university administrators telling him they banned him from campus because they could not ensure his safety. “This is 1938,” he wrote.
After six days of brutal protests, Robert Kraft, owner of the NFL’s New England Patriots, said in a statement through his Foundation to Combat Antisemitism that he will no longer be donating to Columbia, which is his alma mater.
“I am deeply saddened at the virulent hate that continues to grow on campus and throughout our country. I am no longer confident that Columbia can protect its students and staff and I am not comfortable supporting the university until corrective action is taken,” he said.
After several days of protests, President Joe Biden spoke while campaigning in Virginia about the rise of antisemitism both on campuses and here in this leafy Pittsburgh neighborhood known for its historic homes and diverse community.
“I condemn the antisemitic protests,” he said. “That’s why I have set up a program to deal with that. I also condemn those who don’t understand what’s going on with the Palestinians.”
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The woman whose home was vandalized here in Pittsburgh said hearing from people in the community who are Jewish and about the impact this wave of hate and antisemitism is having on them is important, but that it is also important to have her neighbors and the community step up and do something. Here in Pittsburgh, they did just that by covering up the graffiti.
It is a start. If the communities across the country and students who do not share the beliefs of the protests don’t, though, then it is truly 1938 again.