Jewish Cemetery In St. Louis Starts Repairs After Vandalism

Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
A St. Louis Jewish cemetery is repairing dozens of headstones toppled or damaged by vandals over the weekend, and accepting donations to the restoration efforts on its website.
Repairs now underway at Chesed Shel Emeth, the historic Jewish cemetery, where vandals knocked over 150+ headstones yesterday. pic.twitter.com/QIUotjvuqq
— Kiya Edwards (@KSDKkiya) February 21, 2017
Police are still investigating whether the incident was a hate crime, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Anita Feigenbaum, executive director of the cemetery, told a New York Times reporter she doubts the crime was the work of kids.
Kids being kids? Those stones are heavy and a LOT were toppled. She’s not inclined to buy that. (3/9)
— Niraj Chokshi (@NirajC) February 21, 2017
Missouri Governor Eric Greitens, who is Jewish, condemned the attack on Facebook. “Today, Missouri witnessed a despicable act of what appears to be anti-Semitic vandalism at Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery,” he wrote.
Contact Shira Hanau at [email protected] or on Twitter @shirahanau
Report an incident
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
