KALAMAZOO, Mich. — “We’ve joined the ranks of all the Jewish people all over the world that have been dealing with antisemitism lately.”
That’s one of the first thoughts that crossed Dobrushe Haller’s mind as she stepped outside to find swastikas all over the property of the Chabad of Kalamazoo.
Haller, her husband, Rabbi Mordechai, and the Chabad of Kalamazoo hosted a Shabbat dinner Friday night in a “beautiful community celebration,” according to Haller.
But by Saturday morning, swastikas were spray-painted on the side of the building and on Chanukah decorations that were placed in the front yard.
“…The feeling of having someone painting swastikas…the antisemitism is just, it’s unacceptable,” Haller said. “As a people, as a community, we don’t want to stand for that anymore. We respect everybody and everybody should respect each other, and we should try to add a little light, and that’s what we attempt to do and we hope that everybody can do the same. Nobody should feel uncomfortable in their neighborhood and in their houses.”
Although the Jewish community doesn’t necessarily take the vandalism personally, community members do feel as if they are a target, according to Haller.
“We feel like it’s against the Jewish community because we’re Jewish,” Haller said. “It’s ironic because we’re here to help people, and all of the Jewish people that I know are always willing to help everybody no matter if they’re Jewish or not. And so it’s very sad that Jewish people are being targeted.”
And it’s not just Haller that’s feeling uneasy. The community as a whole has been feeling troubled since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, according to Haller.
This includes students at Kalamazoo College who have expressed that they’ve been feeling Semitism.
“We’ve been hearing about things going on a Kalamazoo College and we’ve been trying to help them in different areas,” Haller said. “The fact that it happened to us was a little disconcerting.”
However, despite the vandalism rocking the community, neighbors remain focused on the positive, coming together to “dispel the darkness.”
Whether it be friends stopping by to show their support or community members lending a hand to clean up the markings, the Chabad of Kalamazoo continues to receive love from its community.
“Just the few people that happened to be around yesterday [Sunday] and then we had a full group of friends that came over and we prayed together and to help us clean up, and so that is just a beautiful silver lining if you want to say,” Haller said. “That’s what epitomizes the Jewish people, we’re all together, we’re all united, and it’s sad that we’ve become a target or we are a target, but we like to focus on the positive and try to bring light into the world…it’s just so beautiful the love and support that we’ve received from the community and continue to receive.”
More information about the Chabad of Kalamazoo can be found online.