Nazi graffiti daubed in Dollis Hill
Vigil to be held after offensive symbols spray-painted onto street signs, bus stops and outside residents' houses
Community leaders and the local member of parliament have condemned the daubing of Nazi graffiti in Dollis Hill.
A vigil will took place on Tuesday night after swastikas and SS logos were spray-painted on street signs, a bus stop, and outside people’s houses in the area over the weekend.
The offensive graffiti, which was noticed on Sunday, has since been cleaned off by community groups.
The police said in a statement that they were called at 10am on Sunday, 8 April “to reports of anti-Semitic graffiti written in and around Hamilton Road, NW10. No arrest, and no suspect has been identified – if any information comes to light about the incident, it will be assessed by officers.”
TfL’s Director of Compliance, Policing and On Streets Services, Steve Burton, condemned the “vile racist act of vandalism” and said they’d “assist the police with their investigation.”
Local Labour MP Dawn Butler told Jewish News she was “horrified” by the graffiti, adding that “anti-Semitism has no place in society and we must stand together against hatred, racism and bigotry in all its forms, wherever we encounter it.”
“The actions of a tiny minority will not dent our mutual respect for one another in our community. We all show solidarity with our Jewish residents, defiant against the attempts by a few to spread fear and hate.”
Rabbi Baruch Levin of Brondesbury Park Synagogue, who attended the vigil on Tuesday night, told Jewish News the graffiti was “clearly very troubling and concerning, but I’d like to think it’s an isolated incident which doesn’t point to a general trend of anti-Semitic behaviour in the area.”
Calling communal relations “generally very good” particularly with the Christian and Muslim communities in the area, he said “we will combat this ugly behaviour with a show of unity and a sense of togetherness which will hopefully send a very clear message to the perpetrators that this sort of behaviour will not be tolerated and is unacceptable”.
Board of Deputies Chief Executive Gillian Merron condemned the swastikas, saying: “Dollis Hill, with its historic connection to Winston Churchill’s stand against fascism, will not be divided by the actions of idiots. We hope the police catch the offenders and that they face the consequences of their actions.”
Lucy Cox from Brent Stand Up To Racism told Jewish News: “As local residents we were shocked that this hateful graffiti had gone up in our multicultural area. Along with our local Labour Councillor…and other residents we scrubbed out the Nazi graffiti but now we want to show we won’t let racists divide us”.
The ‘We Are Dollis Hill; No Nazis Here Vigil’ will take place at 7pm in Dollis Hill, and there is a Facebook event here.
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