'United Against Hate': Brookline Antisemitic Stickers Condemned

BROOKLINE, MA — Brookline's Select Board Chair is condemning the plastering of more than a dozen antisemitic stickers with the Nazi symbol on them near Coolidge Corner as "symbols of hate are also intended to intimidate and harass the entire community" after the stickers were removed this weekend.

Brookline Select Board Chair Bernard Greene issued a statement saying the "vile" symbol brings to the surface "painful memories and scars left by millennia of antisemitism."

This is the second time in recent weeks that a similar sticker campaign took place after they were also found in the Harvard Square area of Cambridge.

"The use of this symbol is intended to intimidate and harass the Jewish Community of Brookline," Greene said in what he said was a personal statement since the Select Board had yet to meet to make a formal collective declaration. "Brookline has been a welcoming bastion of inclusion for the Jewish community for over a hundred years. We have been a home to multiple diverse congregations of numerous denominations.

"These symbols of hate are also intended to intimidate and harass the entire community including Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and Hindu residents and residents with no religious affiliation, all of whom stand against hate.

"We will not be intimidated."

Greene said Brookline police and town officials will take "proactive measures to prevent and address all incidents of hate and discrimination" and are "committed to fostering a welcoming and inclusive environment for all."

Residents who see vandalism or hateful messages are encouraged to report them here so that they can be removed.

Those with knowledge of who might be responsible for the antisemitic stickers are also asked to call the Brookline Police Department at 617-730-2222.