ORLANDO (AP)
An antisemitic message was projected onto a downtown building in Orlando, Florida, during the city’s New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Police said Wednesday that investigators are trying to determine who is responsible. Downtown Orlando attracted thousands of revelers welcoming in 2023 on Saturday night.
“Chief Eric Smith does want the community to know that the Orlando Police Department condemns the use of any derogatory comments toward anyone and will take any action within our power to hold anyone who does so accountable,” police said in a statement.
Mayor Buddy Dyer said in a tweet that prejudice and hate aren’t welcome in Orlando.
“To the members of Orlando’s Jewish community: we stand with you, united against antisemitism and hatred,” Dyer said.
The Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish civil rights group, tracked 2,717 antisemitic instances of assault, harassment and vandalism in 2021, a 34% increase over the previous year and the highest number since the group began tracking them in 1979.
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