Hate in the Hamptons reared its ugly head.
Swastikas and other antisemitic graffiti were discovered in a Montauk park last week.
The vandalism inside the popular Shadmoor State Park included spray-painted scrawls of Nazi-era references to “SS” and “der Jude,” the German term for Jews. And this was the second time that antisemitic vandalism was discovered in the posh east end enclave since the Oct. 7 attacks.
Rabbi Josh Franklin of the Jewish Center of the Hamptons was “heartbroken but not shocked” when he discovered the hateful rhetoric in the park last Thursday, the same day that an Israeli flag was ripped from his own East Hampton synagogue.
“I’m through being shocked because I’ve seen this far too many times,” he told The Post, adding, “there’s a sense of violation in the community.” An “emotional” Franklin said the incident elicits a “visceral response from my gut.”
He also noted he’s regularly been called “baby killer” and “Nazi” in the wake of the 2023 massacre and ensuing war in Gaza.
In a “impromptu” rally the rabbi helped organize the same day, a somber yet stoic Franklin told the crowd not to bow to gaslighters who try to paint Jews as “hysterical” for calling out antisemitism. “Listen – because [someone] might not be seeing something that we experience incredibly profoundly,” he said, “There is antisemitism and Jew hatred all over the place… This is our reality.”
Longtime Hamptons residents expressed both anger and fortitude over the hateful expressions.
“This is an attempt at intimidation – an evil attempt we see all over the world – and we have to fight it, like we’ve fought it for thousands of years,” said 86-year-old Mitchel Agoos, an east ender for 50 years.
Last week’s incident was the second time in a little over a year that Montauk has been rocked by such brazen antisemitism.
Last year, Jewish-owned Naturally Good on Main Street was among the Montauk sites vandalized with swastikas, alongside scrawls of “Free Palestine” and “Jeden Die,” translated as “Jews die.” Michael Nicholoulias, a 74-year-old Montauk resident, was nabbed for the felonies.
For Rabbi Franklin, it was a sobering wakeup call: “I helped clean the graffiti off the storefront, which was something I never thought I’d have to do as a rabbi.”
The East Hampton town police told the Post that it “turned everything over to the state” police, which is leading the investigation.
“These hateful acts are devastating and heartbreaking to our Jewish family, friends and neighbors tearing at the fabric of our entire community. Fortunately, the love for community is stronger here than the symbols of hate discovered in Shadmoor last week,” Town of East Hampton Supervisor, Kathee Burke-Gonzalez, said in a statement to The Post.
“Maybe it’s because we are at the ‘The End,’ but our community always stands strong together. We take care of each other. And we will continue to educate, create space for and keep safe every single one of our neighbors. As we stand for love, respect and acceptance for all.”
A “Stand with Israel” rally this past July in East Hampton drew hundreds of participants. Rally co-organizer Agoos stressed the importance of unity in the face of intimidation.
“We have to stand tall, be tough, and find these guys and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law,” said the Hamptonite of 50 years. “We’ve encountered antisemitism throughout the ages – and it reared its ugly head after the Oct. 7 massacre. We have to stand up and be strong – it’s the only way to defeat the scourge of antisemitism.”
For Charlotte Klein Sasso of Amagansett, who grew up vacationing in Montauk, and has lived in the area full-time for 40 years, the most recent spate of antisemitism ”cuts me right to my core. This is not the Hamptons that I know.”
She said her Holocaust-survivor father, who first came to Montauk with his fellow survivors who also fought in the Hungarian Revolution, would be shocked at last week’s hate display.
“He would have been right there with me on the [town] green standing up and not hiding,” she said of her late dad, who fell in love with the ocean after living in a land-locked country. “He would talk about being proud of who we are, speaking out and encouraging people to come together and educate them.”
The public events around Hanukkah should draw even more crowds, Jews and non-Jews alike, she said. “This is about unity – more than ever.”
Franklin imparted a timely message for Hanukkah, a holiday celebrating Jewish victory in the face of annihilation.
“Although there are those who harbor hatred toward Jews and attempt to intimidate us with acts of vandalism or violence, we refuse to cower in fear. Hanukkah teaches us to spread light, even in the face of darkness. This is not merely an act of resistance—it is the sacred responsibility inherent in the story of Hanukkah,” he said.
“For those who are not Jewish, we warmly invite you to join in this mission of kindling spiritual light to dispel the darkness. Stand with your local Jewish communities, participate in a menorah lighting, and, while you’re at it, share some latkes with your Jewish friends. Together, we can illuminate the world.”
