The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Michigan
- Headstones in a Jewish cemetery in Grand Rapids, Michigan, vandalized with ”Trump’ and ‘MAGA’ graffiti discovered the same day the president visited the city for his final campaign rally.
- The Grand Rapids Police Department found six headstones spray-painted red with ‘TRUMP’ and ‘MAGA’ at the Ahavas Israel Cemetery on Monday, AP reported.
- Donald Trump ended his 2020 presidential campaign in Grand Rapids on November 2, 2020, at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport just as he did in 2016 before winning the state.
- Sgt. John Wittkowski, from the Grand Rapids Police Department, said that no suspects have been identified and no arrests have been made as of Tuesday morning, according to AP.
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Headstones in a Jewish cemetery in Grand Rapids, Michigan, vandalized with ”Trump’ and ‘MAGA’ graffiti, were discovered the same day President Trump visited the city for his final campaign rally.
Officers from the Grand Rapids Police Department discovered six headstones spray-painted red with ‘TRUMP’ and ‘MAGA’ at the Ahavas Israel Cemetery on Monday, AP reported.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Michigan posted images of the headstones on Twitter with the caption: “We are appalled by the reported desecration of gravestones at the Ahavas Israel Cemetery in Grand Rapids, MI. We are in close touch with the Jewish community and Law Enforcement to investigate this vandalism.”
—ADL Michigan (@ADLMichigan) November 2, 2020
Donald Trump ended his 2020 presidential campaign in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on November 2, 2020, at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport just as he did in 2016 before winning the state.
The Michigan Democratic Jewish Caucus said in a statement: “Make no mistake, this heinous act was committed on the eve of the 2020 election to send an intimidating message to the president’s opponents, and particularly, Jewish voters.”
Cary Fleischer, Grand Rapids regional chair of the Michigan Democratic Jewish Caucus, added: "This attack on our Jewish community in Grand Rapids speaks volumes about the choice confronting our country in tomorrow's election.
"It is long past time to elect leaders who care about the communities they serve, who will defend the rule of law and stand up to hatred and violent extremism - not stoke its flames."
The Michigan Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MI) also showed its support by offering a $1,000 reward to anyone who contacts the police with information leading to an arrest and conviction.
Cair-MI Executive Director Dawud Walid added: "We call on federal law enforcement authorities to investigate the recent desecration of the Jewish cemetery as hate crime.
"The sacred sites of people of faith must be protected from vandalism that is meant to spread fear and intimidation."
The Ahvas Israel Cemetery belongs to a synagogue of the same name with a 125-year-old congregation and is in a residential area near Catholic, Lithuanian and other graveyards, the Metro added.
Sgt. John Wittkowski, a spokesperson for the Grand Rapids Police Department said that no suspects have been identified and no arrests have been made as of Tuesday morning, according to AP.
Insider contacted the Grand Rapids Police Department for a comment but it did not immediately respond.