Kosher stores, synagogues, vandalized and looted in LA protests

Nearly 400 protesters were arrested in Los Angeles as demonstrations have continued following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
People loot property during nationwide unrest following the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., May 30, 2020. Picture taken May 30, 2020. (photo credit: REUTERS)
People loot property during nationwide unrest following the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., May 30, 2020. Picture taken May 30, 2020.
(photo credit: REUTERS)
A number of kosher stores and synagogues were vandalized and looted in the uptown Los Angeles neighborhood of Fairfax, between Saturday night and Sunday morning, by people protesting police brutality following the killing last week of George Floyd, an African-American man, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Some of the synagogues damaged as a result of vandalism, graffiti and looting by protesters include Congregation Kehilas Yaakov, also known as Rabbi Gershon Bess Shul, and Tiferes Tzvi (Rabbi Ganzweig Shul) on Beverly Boulevard in the Fairfax district of Los Angeles. Elder of Ziyon, a pro-Israel activist, recorded clips of some of the damage done to the synagogues in Fairfax.

 
It was also reported that Congregation Beth Israel, one of the oldest synagogues in Los Angeles and also on Beverly Boulevard, was defaced with antisemitic graffiti that read "F**k Israel" and "Free Palestine" scrawled along its walls. 

In addition to destruction and graffiti inflicted upon the synagogues, a number of kosher restaurants, bakeries and stores were ransacked by protesters, looting much of the merchandise and causing extensive property damage. Some of the stores impacted include Ariel Glatt Kosher Market, Mensch Bakery and Kitchen, and Syd's Pharmacy and Kosher Vitamins, all located in the Fairfax district.
 
Richard S. Hirschhaut, American Jewish Committee Los Angeles Regional Director, condemned the acts of vandalism, saying in a statement to the Jewish Journal that “It is deplorable that certain protesters in Los Angeles today resorted to violence and vandalism. Sadly, their destructive opportunism included the defacing of Congregation Beth Israel, one of the oldest synagogues in Los Angeles and the spiritual home to many Holocaust survivors over the years. The epithets scrawled on the synagogue wall do nothing to advance the cause of peace or justice, here or abroad.”
Similarly, Liora Rez, Director of the Stop Antisemitism watchdog, also condemned their action in a statement to the Jewish Journal, saying that “once again we see vile antisemitism being disguised as activism. To vandalize a synagogue during this horrific time does nothing but further divide a broken country.”
 
Meanwhile, protests have continued to impact much of Los Angeles and other cities after George Floyd, 46, died after being pinned down on the neck by a white Minneapolis police officer for nearly nine minutes. Derek Chauvin, the officer caught on video, was charged with third-degree murder on Friday. 
Nearly 400 protesters were arrested in Los Angeles on Saturday, while Mayor Eric Gacetti announced a curfew for the city from 8 p.m. on May 30 until 5:30 a.m. on May 31. Curfews were also declared in other California cities, including San Francisco and Santa Monica.