A synagogue in Kenosha, Wisconsin, was vandalized during demonstrations and riots on Thursday morning.
A reporter for the right-wing news site Townhall posted a video of a Black Lives Matter activist spray-painting the words "Free Palestine" on the driveway of Beth Hillel Temple, a Reform synagogue.
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The vandalism took place amid the protests and riots that erupted Kenosha after a Black man, Jacob Blake, 29, was shot seven times in the back by police on Sunday during an arrest. Blake is in critical condition, his lawyer told NPR.
Rabbi Dena Feingold of Beth Hillel said she felt the vandalism wasn't representative of the protests.
"We are advocates for justice for all oppressed people. We support the movement for black lives, and we know that one person with a can of spray paint does not speak for an entire cause," Feingold said.
"We pray for Jacob Blake and decry the vigilante murders that took place a block from our synagogue two nights ago. Our call is for justice and peace in our community and around the world," the rabbi said.
On Wednesday, the Jewish Community Relations Council of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation expressed solidarity with the black community and called for unity.
"We believe that all must stand united to rid our communities of systemic racism and its toxic effects because it puts black lives at risk, including black and brown Jewish lives, and harms us all," the organization told JNS in a statement.
"Our pursuit of justice is guided by the Jewish principle of pikuah nefesh, which places the sanctity of life above all else. Government policies, practices and policing must be guided by this shared value."
Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.
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