After anti-Black and vulgar graffiti was photographed in the Spuyten Duyvil Playground on Saturday, Feb 12, a number of elected officials, city agencies and others issued public statements condemning the incident, and took various actions on the matter.

 

In the meantime, for the second consecutive weekend, a park in the Northwest Bronx was discovered to have been targeted with more anti-Black graffiti. Elected officials are now planning to join together for a formal press conference on Tuesday, Feb. 22, to stand firm against the hateful incidents, and to continue to call for a thorough investigation into both incidents.

 

Northwest Bronx, NYC, a local group which describes itself as caring about the Northwest Bronx, NY, covering Riverdale, Kingsbridge, Spuyten Duyvil, Marble Hill, and Van Cortlandt Village, and other residents had tweeted about the initial incident on Feb. 12, asking who could fix the issue. District 11 City Council Member Eric Dinowitz thanked those who brought the matter to his attention, saying, “It is absolutely disgusting to see this. We’ve already forwarded this to NYC Parks and we’ll keep you posted.”

 

He later added, “I have been in touch with the Parks Dept. and w/ the captain of the 50th Precinct. This will be cleaned and has been referred to their hate crimes division. There is no place for this racist vandalism anywhere. especially where children are meant to play.”

 

Dinowitz followed up with a later tweet, saying, “Over the weekend, a beautiful Saturday morning was marred by this awful, racist vandalism in a children’s playground. I have been working with @NYCParks and @NYPD50Pct to remove all forms of vandalism and to investigate this further.”

 

Meanwhile, State Sen. Alessandra Biaggi (S.D. 34) also denounced the public display at the playground, located at 1302, 6 W 236th St, tweeting, “This disgusting display of overt racism is cruel & unwelcome in every part of New York.”

 

Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (A.D. 81) also condemned the incident, tweeting, “The racist, hateful graffiti found in Spuyten Duyvil Playground this weekend is repulsive and grossly unacceptable.” He added, “I urge the NYPD and Parks Dept to quickly identify, arrest, and prosecute those responsible for this hate crime to the fullest extent of the law.”

 

The racist, hateful graffiti found in Spuyten Duyvil Playground this weekend is repulsive and grossly unacceptable.

I urge the NYPD and Parks Dept to quickly identify, arrest, and prosecute those responsible for this hate crime to the fullest extent of the law.

— Jeffrey Dinowitz (@JeffreyDinowitz) February 14, 2022

 

Both the assemblyman and the councilman later issued a more lengthy joint statement on the matter on Monday.

 

I have been in touch with the Parks Department & w/ the captain of the 50th precinct. This will be cleaned, and has been referred to their hate crimes division.

There is no place for this racist vandalism anywhere, especially where children are meant to play. https://t.co/YxFjZHnKYx

— Council Member Eric Dinowitz (@EricDinowitzNYC) February 12, 2022

“Playgrounds should be places filled with the laughter of children and free from the world’s worries, and it is deeply disturbing that anyone would defile a playground with such hateful and vulgar language,” the statement read. “As soon as the graffiti was discovered, we contacted leadership of the Parks Department as well as the NYPD. The Parks Department immediately removed the graffiti, and we urge the NYPD and Parks Department to continue taking this act of hateful vandalism seriously.”

 

The racist, hateful graffiti found in Spuyten Duyvil Playground this weekend is repulsive and grossly unacceptable.

I urge the NYPD and Parks Dept to quickly identify, arrest, and prosecute those responsible for this hate crime to the fullest extent of the law.

— Jeffrey Dinowitz (@JeffreyDinowitz) February 14, 2022

The statement continued, “All avenues to identify the perpetrator or perpetrators should be exhausted, including the review of any available camera footage as well as comparison of this graffiti to other graffiti incidents throughout the area. Everybody in our community, regardless of race or ethnicity or any demographic factor, deserves to feel safe and welcome — especially when they are playing with their children at a local park.”

 

The assemblyman, himself, has been the target of antisemitic imagery, including swastikas and yellow stars, during recent protests held outside both his home and his office, as previously reported. Some people attending the rallies appeared to draw a correlation between legislation proposed by the assemblyman calling for a COVID-19 vaccine mandate in publicly funded schools with nazism. The choice of symbolism used at the rally was widely condemned across the State, at the time.

 

For his part, the councilman has spoken out, as has his father, about the need to educate the community about racism and the prevention of further hate crimes. He also recently supported a bill to audit Holocaust education in schools.

"This disgusting display of overt racism is cruel & unwelcome in every part of New York." –@SenatorBiaggi via @News12BKhttps://t.co/igzzIORIf2

— NYS Senate Democrats (@NYSenDems) February 14, 2022

Meanwhile, Jessica Altagracia Woolford, candidate for Assembly District 81, the seat held by the assemblyman, as reported, also voiced her disgust at the graffiti display at Spuyten Duyvil playground, writing, “Spent the last hour cleaning up racist graffiti written on our playground with another Riverdale mom.”

 

She added, “No one should be made to feel unwelcome in our neighborhood, especially children. We need answers and accountability ASAP.  It takes all of us to root out hate. Let’s do better.”

 

As reported, a Riverdale man was arrested last year following a spate of anti-semitic attacks on various Jewish centers in the Northwest Bronx. Other hate crimes have also been reported previously in Norwood against the transgender community.

 

Norwood News followed up with the NYPD to inquire about the status of the latest incident in Spuyten Duyvil to ask if any perpetrators had yet been identified. A police spokesperson responded, saying, “The Commanding Officer of the 50th Precinct [is] has been made aware of the Anti-Black graffiti at this location. A complaint report for Criminal Mischief has been filed. NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force has been notified. The investigation is ongoing.”

 

Meanwhile, when contacted for comment, NYC Department of Parks & Recreation press officer, Dan Kastanis, responded, saying, “Bias graffiti has no place in parks, and it was removed on Sunday morning.”

 

According to NYC Parks, Parks staff remove graffiti on a daily basis in parks throughout the city. Such graffiti is typically removed within 24 hours of receiving notice of its existence. Parks officials said that anyone who observes graffiti in City parks should report it to 311.

 

The attached photo [of the slide] shows the Spuyten Duyvil playground after it was cleaned. The top photo is a file photo taken before the incident occurred.

 

On Monday, Feb. 21, after a second incident was reported over the weekend commencing Feb. 18, the Office of Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (A.D. 81) issued a press release confirming that a press conference would be held in Seton Park, at the intersection of West 232nd Street and Independence Avenue on the Spuyten Duyvil border on Tuesday, Feb. 22, at 10.45 a.m., “to discuss [the] response to hate graffiti discovered in the park over the weekend.” The assemblyman, Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson, and Council Member Eric Dinowitz are expected to attend. The organizers said rain is forecast and they encouraged attendees to dress appropriately.

 

According to the latest data as of Feb. 13, from the NYPD, there has been no increase in year-to-date hate crimes in the 50th, 46th or 47th precincts, compared to the same period last year, while year-to-date hate crimes in the 52nd precinct have fallen, compared to the same period last year.