70 gravestones pushed over in Jewish cemetery feel like a 'slap in the face' for community - Action News
Home WebMail Sunday, November 10, 2024, 11:25 PM | Calgary | 0.4°C | Regions Advertise Login | Our platform is in maintenance mode. Some URLs may not be available. |
Manitoba

70 gravestones pushed over in Jewish cemetery feel like a 'slap in the face' for community

About 70 gravestones at a Jewish cemetery in West Kildonan were tipped over earlier this week, shocking and upsetting members of the community.

Regardless of intention antisemitism or mere mischief it's hurt Jewish community, director says

Gravestones are seen tipped over.
Gravestones lie on the ground at the Shaarey Zedek Cemetery across from Kildonan Park in Winnipeg. Members of the Jewish community are shocked and upset at the vandalism, said the executive director of the synagogue that owns the cemetery. (Submitted by Ran Ukashi)

About 70 gravestones at a Jewish cemetery in West Kildonan were tipped over earlier this week, shocking and upsetting members of the community.

Staff of the Shaarey Zedek Cemetery arrived at work Wednesday morning and noticed the heavy stones had been pushed off their plinths, said Ran Ukashi, executive director of Congregation Shaarey Zedek, which owns and administers the cemetery.

The phone has been ringing off the hook since then, Ukashi said, andpeople in the community are hurt.

In Judaism, there's a concept called chesedshelemet that roughly translates to true loving kindness, he said.

The concept refers to the honour loved ones bring to the dead byburying them, taking care of thegrave andhonouring their memory.It's a kindness that is purely altruistic, he said.

"This is almost like an inversion of that. It's an insult to the dead and also to the living families who go there and they see this," Ukashi said.

Staff arrived at work to find gravestones toppled over at Shaarey Zedek Cemetery in Winnipeg on Wednesday. They've since been restored to their spots, but police are investigating the vandalism. (Submitted by Ran Ukashi)

Although it's not clear whether the vandalism was motivated by anti-Jewish prejudice or mere mischief, it stings.

"How painful would it be to see your parents', your grandparents' tombstone damaged that way?It demonstrates contempt for the people, thereal lives that those people lived ...and it causes a lot of pain," Ukashi said.

Jewish communities often experience vandalism motivated by hate on synagogues and in cemeteries in Winnipeg and across Canada, he said.

"I think there's a strong emotional toll, much more than the physical toll. You can always stand up the headstones, repair things. That can be done. But it's the ultimate slap in the face," Ukashi said.

Staff have placed all of the headstones back where they belong, he said.

Police are investigating, but wouldn't provide details about the scope of the investigation at this time.

B'nai Brith Canada and the Jewish Federation of Canada have been informed of the vandalism, Ukashi said.

In the interim, he hopes anybody who saw anything on Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning will report those details to the police.