Antisemitic hate graffiti in Wellington, Jewish Council speaks out

• A graffiti message in Wellington saying “I hated Jews before it was cool” was removed this morning from a wall in Aro Valley.
• Jewish Council spokesman Ben Kepes linked the graffiti to “flippant” comments from community leaders.
• He said the incident was just one of many in recent years that showed it was becoming more acceptable to hate Jewish people.

The son of a Holocaust survivor says a graffiti message about hating Jews “before it was cool” in a Wellington suburb is the direct result of “flippant” comments from community leaders.

Last night the message “I hated Jews before it was cool” was graffitied on a concrete wall along Aro St. An image of it was posted to a local Facebook page.

A Wellington City Council spokeswoman confirmed it had numerous reports about the graffiti and immediately arranged for it to be removed by contractors.

But a university lecturer told the Herald he was the one who removed the graffiti.

He said as soon as he saw a photo of the message he grabbed the darkest paint he had in his shed and covered it up.

New Zealand Jewish Council spokesman Ben Kepes is the son of a Holocaust survivor.

“It’s bizarre and upsetting and frightening and galling and all of those sorts of things,” he said.

“More broadly it tells a story about where we are in New Zealand.”

Kepes said Jewish people in Aotearoa had experienced an increase in antisemitism over the past several years.

The antisemitic message was sprayed onto a concrete wall in Aro Valley, Wellington.

“Leaders in our community in New Zealand make statements without thinking, that emboldens people ... it does make it cool to say these sorts of things again.”

He said the graffiti was “a direct result of those sorts of positionings”.

Jewish community members have recently experienced multiple incidents, including abuse at schools, attempted arson attacks and death threats, he said.

“Once again, those things happen because political leaders make flippant statements without thinking about the consequences.

“For example, when New Zealand political leaders support calls to ‘globalise the intifada’, they are repeating a call for an armed, violent uprising not only against Jews, but against Western society more generally.

”We call on all leaders to think before they parrot slogans from overseas that could target our vulnerable Jewish community here.”

He said classic antisemitic tropes, insults and abuse were being used “under the guise of protest against Israel’s war in Gaza”.

He said the graffiti could have been something seen “daubed across German streets in the 1930s”.

“No matter what is going on internationally or politically, New Zealand Jews should be safe and secure in New Zealand. They should not wake to hateful messages in our streets.”

Holocaust Centre of New Zealand chairwoman Deborah Hart said the graffiti was “alas, quite accurate”.

“It would appear, once again, to be cool to hate Jews.

“We actually see that in a stark increase in Jew hatred, the lacklustre response of schools when Jewish children are subjected to abuse, the deplatforming of Jewish artists, hate mail, property damage and the lack of concern for Jewish people generally.

“The small Jewish community in New Zealand is vulnerable and has suffered ongoing hate, which shows no signs of abating.”

She said the Holocaust “started with hate”.

“It’s time for all to condemn antisemitism, in all its forms and to take care in their messaging.”

Melissa Nightingale is a Wellington-based reporter who covers crime, justice and news in the capital. She joined the Herald in 2016 and has worked as a journalist for 10 years.