San Diego (special) --Tifereth Israel Synagogue was desecrated with spray-painted swastikas and anti-Semitic slogans last weekend in what appeared to be a continuing escalation by San Diego County neo-nazis of their hate war against the Jewish community.

For the last year, neo-nazis have been throwing leaflets bearing anti Jewish, anti-Black, and anti-Latino messages on streets throughout San Diego County. On Memorial Day Weekend, they stickered Congressman Bob Filner's office in Chula Vista with a message calling for the killing of Jews. Between last Saturday night and Sunday morning, they spray painted eight sets of slogans or swastikas on the grounds and building of the Conservative synagogue in San Carlos. The latest outrage prompted the Jewish community and law enforcement to fight back. The Anti-Defamation League announced a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individuals responsible for the spray painting. And San Diego Police Sergeant Jerry Mills, who led a team of patrolmen who responded to the incident, told news media whereas previous instances of neo-nazi leafleting may have been considered no more serious than littering, the desecration of the synagogue definitely will be

DISGUSTED--Morris Casuto, regional director of the Anti-Defamation League, left, and Rabbi  Leonard Rosenthal of Tifereth Israel Synagoue note with digust the anti-Semitic slogans  spraypainted on the synagogue last weekend.

considered a criminal act of vandalism and a hate crime.

Morris Casuto, ADL's regional director, said he anticipated the vandalism would "galvanize" the law enforcement community into forming an interagency team to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators. He said he anticipated that such a team will include the San Diego Police, the San Diego Sheriff, the Chula Vista Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

One of the spray-painted slogans appeared to take cognizance of the fact that Tifereth Israel had been similarly desecrated about eight years ago, in a case in which several youths were apprehended and subsequently convicted for their deeds. The message, accompanied by a swastika, read "Die Jew Boy" and "We're Back."

A second message-- incorporating a swastika and the common sexual obscenity -- was spray painted on the outside wall of an alcove that was specially constructed at the synagogue to house a Holocaust Torah, retreived after World War II from a nazi storeroom in Czecheslovakia.

A swastika on a storage shed was accompanied by the initials "SWP," which may stand for "Supreme White Power."

Other messages gave few clues to the identity of the vandals, although one raised questions about their literacy level. A slogan on the outside wall of the synagogue's sanctuary said "Hail Hitler" and "White Power" instead of the more familiar "Heil Hitler." Reporters wondered whether this was a spelling error.

San Diego Police Sgt. Jerry Mills reported that on the same morning that Tifereth Israel Synagogue was found vandalized, typical neo-nazi leaflets were found on the grounds of the Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School and at an apartment complex in the Kearny Mesa area.

A La Jolla resident telephoned HERITAGE to say that he found a similar racist flyer stuffed inside the newspaper that was delivered to his home.

Rabbi Leonard Rosenthal and Anthony Black, respectively the spiritual leader and president of Tifereth Israel Synagogue, appeared at a news conference with Rick Barton, chairman of the ADL's civil rights committee, to announce the reward.

"Though by having this press conference, we unfortunately give them the exposure that they crave, we will do so in order to stop this madness," Black commented.

"This type of activity does not cause us to shy away," Barton said. "It simply causes us to redouble our efforts to find the individuals who are responsible for this and bring them to justice."

Rosenthal commented that Tifereth Israel Synagogue counts numerous Survivors of the nazi Holocaust among its members, and added: "I can only imagine what their thoughts would be if they came and saw this type of desecration on their house of worship here in the United States." 

Fortunately we are going to get it cleaned off right away; we've had a company that offered to come out and help us and our members will paint it out," Rosenthal said.

The rabbi also appealed to members of religious and ethnic communities to lend their efforts to finding the perpetrators and bringing them to justice. He said while a synagogue was the target this time; next time it may be a church or another house of worship.

After the news conference, Dave McGill, owner of All-Klean Pressure Washing, blasted some of the spray-painted messages off the synagogue's walls and outside walkways, while Tifereth Israel members David Williams and Edgar Gumpel helped paint out other messages.

Drawn to the scene by radio news reports were Mark Titerman, a refugee who moved to the United States from the former Soviet Union six years ago, and his son Roman, 10, a student at Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School.

"My father was in the Second World War and fought with Hitler," the senior Titerman said. "I thought it (nazism) was gone, but it is everywhere." He said there needs to be more education about the Holocaust to prevent future incidents of vandalism. Son Roman said the "people who have done it should get a fine."

Harriet Salter, president of Tifereth Israel's Sisterhood, said the vandalism "takes my breath away. They can wash it from the walls but they can never erase it from my mind. I'll remember it ther rest of my life. To think that in a country like this we have to experience something like this!"

One of the hate stickers left on Congressman Filner's office over the Memorial Day weekend had a referral phone number for people to call who were interested in the campaign against the Jews.

A call to the phone number this week activated a recorded message which denounced Jews and criticized President Bill Clinton's planned speech at UCSD about race relations this coming weekend.

The primarily anti-Black message said in part: "On June 14, Bubba Clinton will come to the exclusive white and Jew haven of La Jolla to speak on racial reconciliation. Why speak on race in rich La Jolla in a UCSD where they just dropped all affirmative action? Sounds like Bubba Clinton is reverting back to his cracker roots. He may hate n---- now; who can blame him? But he will always love Jews."

Thereafter the message cautioned people not to leave personal information on the message machine but to instead write to the Nationalist Observer in care of a San Diego post office box.

Now that a hate crime has been committed in San Diego, the leaflets, message machine and post office box all may provide clues to the identity of the neo-nazis.

Casuto said the reward also may help. He said people who spray paint anti-Semitic slogans have a tendency to "brag" about it to their acquaintances. He said it is hoped one of those acquaintances will be motivated by the reward money and a sense of civic duty to provide information to the police.