Jewish residents urge Spokane council to condemn antisemitic graffiti left at City Hall

Julia Barrenti told the Spokane City Council on July 21 that antisemitic messages, including phrases she described as “Israel kills babies” and “death to Zionism,” had been left in front of City Hall for nearly a month without a public condemnation from council members or the mayor. “When you treat hate against Jews differently, your silence becomes approval,” Barrenti said during the meeting’s open forum. She urged the council to “speak up and condemn this hate speech directed at the Jewish community.”

Barrenti contrasted the council’s reaction to other incidents, saying the council held a press conference to condemn vandalism on a Pride crosswalk and acted quickly over white supremacist stickers at an intersection, but did not take similar action when the antisemitic messages appeared. She said city staff and citizens “were forced to walk past statements” and that repeated requests to meet and to have the graffiti removed were not addressed. “If you refuse because they interpret your silence as consent, don't you dare mourn the dead Jews when you refuse to protect the living Jews,” she said.

Barrenti referenced violent incidents elsewhere while urging local action, saying two people in Washington, D.C., were killed by a man who shouted a pro-Palestine slogan and that a separate attack in Boulder involved similar language; those references were presented as part of her argument for why the council should publicly condemn the graffiti. The council did not announce a formal response on the record during the meeting.