Remaining Beastie Boys To Lead Anti-Hate Rally in Brooklyn
The two remaining members of the Beastie Boys called for an anti-hate rally at a Brooklyn park in memory of band member Adam Yauch after it was defaced with swastikas.
The rally is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. at the Adam Yauch Park in Brooklyn.
On Friday, the park was spray painted with swastikas and the message “Go Trump.”
The band tweeted on Saturday: “Hate has no place in Brooklyn, NYC, or America. Join us on Sunday to stand against hate messages.”
The New York Police Department Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating the incident. The graffiti has been removed.
Several incidents of swastikas have occurred in New York City and around the state since Election Day on Nov. 8, including on the doors of several dormitory rooms at the New School, and on the apartment building of a Jewish and gay state lawmaker in Greenwich Village in New York City.
“We are deeply disturbed by yet another highly visible anti-Semitic incident in New York,” said Evan R. Bernstein, ADL New York Regional Director. “Since the election, we have witnessed a wave of incidents targeting Jews and other minorities across New York State, and it is particularly offensive that this hateful graffiti was found in a park named after Yauch, an artist who was a passionate activist for peace, respect and diversity.
“We have been gratified to see a strong response to the vandalism from local children who covered the hateful symbols with hearts, as well as condemnations from Councilman Brad Lander and State Senator Daniel Squadron who forcefully denounced the incident,” Bernstein said.
Yauch, known as MCA, died in 2012 at age 47 of cancer of the salivary gland. All three original rappers in the Beastie Boys are Jewish.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse..
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO