By Scott Brinton and Hector Flores
Goldscheider said, "This is a serious crime. Like all crimes, we must know who did it. These hate groups are very harmful, and they cannot be ignored.
"The Jewish community has dealt with this kind of hatred for 2,000 years," the rabbi continued. "By in large, America, with all its problems, has been great for the Jewish community and other minorities. But we have to be vigilant against hate groups."
Goldscheider noted that hate graffiti carries a heavier penalty under the law than the everyday sort. The Herald reported the Twin Lakes graffiti to the 1st Precinct's Problem Oriented Policing Unit. Lt. Richard Hanley said the precinct had not received a report about the hate messages previously, but he said police would look into the matter immediately.
According to officials, the county police department's Bias Crimes Unit is investigating the graffiti that was found at Calhoun, Mepham, Wantagh and McArthur high schools and the Jonas E. Salk School in Levittown over the December holidays.
Nassau County Legislator David Denenberg, a Democrat of Merrick, said police are treating the incidents of hate graffiti as high-priority cases. "This is intolerable," Denenberg said of the graffiti, adding that "people should know it is not that easy to identify the perpetrators. ... Unlike the well-known gangs that are distinguishable by clothes or tattoos, these wannabe gangs are not easily identified."
Kate Collins, a Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District spokeswoman, said district officials are conducting an investigation "to determine who the culprits are behind" the graffiti at the schools. She also noted that the Calhoun and Mepham maintenance staffs immediately cleaned up the graffiti. Experts say that covering it up right away robs the vandals of the recognition they seek through its display.
Collins also said that Central District high schools work to build understanding among students of all races and religions through the World of Difference Program, a project of the Anti-Defamation League.
Goldscheider insisted, "The people responsible for the hate graffiti must be found and treated as the law requires, and not just dismissed." The rabbi noted that the community must understand what's happening. "Staying silent creates an environment that allows [hate graffiti] to be done," Goldscheider said.
He recalled that anti-Semitic graffiti was spray-painted on his temple eight years ago. Racial slurs were also scrawled on the nearby home of an African-American family. The temple "called a press conference, and we were joined by others in support of our stance against hate," the rabbi said.
Richard Schary, a North Bellmore environmental activist who mapped out a Bellmore-Wantagh nature trail for the Long Island Greenbelt Conference, said he has recently seen a marked increase in graffiti throughout the woodlands that hug the Wantagh State Parkway.
Paule Pachter, a member of Bellmore-Merrick Parents for Change, said there have been past incidents of hate graffiti in the schools. He said, however, that the recent cases represent the first time a group had claimed responsibility. "What is new is that it is now associated with gang identity," Pachter said.
He added, "The community needs to come together and intelligently discuss what is going on in the schools in regard to these incidents. The dialogue should include the Chamber of Commerce, religious institutions, parents, students and the school administration."
Concern appears to be growing in the community that gangs have infiltrated local schools. School and county officials say there are no real gangs locally, but there are gang wannabes.
The mother of a local high school student who was recently brutally attacked at Park Avenue Elementary School in North Bellmore disputes the notion of wannabe gangs. She says there are indeed real gangs. She said "The Crew" beat her son so badly that he had to be hospitalized. "Don't go to the school yards" at night, she said. "That's where these things happen. There's a gang called The Crew."
Police say residents should report graffiti and other gang-like activity immediately. The 1st Precinct, which covers the Merricks and Bellmores north of Sunrise Highway, can be reached at (516) 573-6100. The 7th Precinct, which is responsible for the South Side of the Sunrise, can be reached at 573-6700.
Comments about this story? SBrinton@liherald.com or HFlores@liherald.com, or (516) 569-4000 ext. 203 or 283.
