Multiple Jewish homes, a synagogue and a Jewish center in Queens — which contains a preschool — were vandalized with swastikas and other antisemitic graffiti overnight on Monday, leaving Jewish residents questioning their safety amid a spate of antisemitic incidents. 

“When rabbis and congregants arrived to pray this morning, they expected to be met with their usual loving community. When a family woke up, they were prepared to begin an otherwise normal week. Instead, they were met with terrifying signals of hatred and threats of violence,” New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin, the city’s first Jewish council speaker, wrote on X. 

Menin, alongside Queens Councilmembers Lynn Schulman and Phil Wong, visited Congregation Machane Chodosh in Forest Hills, the impacted synagogue, on Monday morning. The Rego Park Jewish Center and two residential houses in Forest Hills were also targeted.  

The NYPD is searching for at least four individuals responsible for the vandalism, according to Menin. 

“With antisemitism on the rise here and across the globe, we will always stand up for our Jewish community and fight back against hate,” said Menin, adding that the graffiti will be removed once the NYPD completes its investigation.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said in a statement on Monday afternoon that he was “horrified and angered” by the vandalism, which he called “a deliberate act of antisemitic hatred meant to instill fear.”

“I stand in solidarity with our Jewish neighbors. Their safety, dignity, and belonging are non-negotiable,” Mamdani continued.

Gov. Kathy Hochul similarly condemned the “vile, targeted hate.”

Democratic state Assemblymember Sam Berger, who represents Queens’ nearby heavily Jewish neighborhood of Kew Gardens Hills, told JI that his grandparents, who are Holocaust survivors, “lived around the corner from this shul. It’s mortifying.”

“I have a Jewish community that is seriously questioning whether it is still welcome in this city,” said Berger. 

“One of the sites houses a pre-K program, where young children, their families, and staff were greeted with swastikas and other hateful vandalism,” said Mark Treyger, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York. 

“This is not normal,” said Treyger, “and we need city leaders to act now.”

Sydney Altfield, CEO of Teach Coalition — which oversees security grants for Congregation Machane Chodosh and most other synagogues and schools in the area — said in a statement, “Waking up to swastikas on a synagogue, homes, and a Jewish center that houses a preschool is not just vandalism, it is a direct act of intimidation against an entire community. We’re working closely with synagogue leadership and guiding next steps to protect families and strengthen security in the short term.”

“This is exactly why sustained investment in security for Jewish institutions is so critical. It also underscores how important it is not only to secure that funding but also to ensure institutions can access it,” Altfield continued.

In January, Queens played host to a pro-Hamas protest that caused nearby schools and a synagogue to close early, where dozens of masked protesters chanted “We support Hamas” near the synagogue.