SWC to Attend 30th Anniversary of Bombing of Argentinian Jewish Center
On July 18th, representatives of the Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) will be in Buenos Aires for the 30th anniversary commemoration ofthe 1994 bombing...
| :: Updated Statement From the Simon Wiesenthal Center - NOVEMBER 11, 2022 - 1:30pm PT :: |
| Based on first reports, there were initial concerns this was an anti-Semitic incident, there was much confusion around thestory as it unfolded. As the Simon Wiesenthal Center reviewed the facts as they emerged, it became clear that anincident occurred related to the bus as was confirmed by the Chicago police department. But, it is now clear that the incident was not anti-Semitic as first reported. The Simon Wiesenthal Center agrees with thatconclusion following the review of facts that emerged and after speaking to the school’s principal and other Jewish organizations. |
| :: UPDATE - NOVEMBER 11, 2022 -9:00am PT :: When the Simon Wiesenthal Center went to press with the story and released the statement below,this was verified by two parents who filed police reports based on what their sons had experienced. In addition, the SWC spoke to two detectives and an officer in the police department whowere investigating the students allegations. We were told this was a hate crime. Later in the day, the school released a statement refuting what the children had reported. The schoolis now saying that this was not an anti-Semitic incident. |
NOVEMBER 10, 2022, CHICAGO - The Simon Wiesenthal Center, a leading global Jewish human rights NGO dedicated toimparting the lessons of the Nazi Holocaust and to combatting anti-Semitism, has expressed its alarm over an anti-Semitic hate crime that occurred in Chicago on November 9, 2022. A schoolbus was dropping off Jewish elementary students from a local Orthodox Jewish school, in the West Rogers Park neighborhood. At one stop, four men jumped onto the bus, hurled anti-Semiticslurs, and performed the Heil Hitler salute at terrorized children. Eventually, the bus driver succeeded in forcing the four attackers off the bus.
The Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) has been in close contact with the Chicago Police Department and a number of the parents of thechildren affected by this frightening anti-Semitic encounter.
“The Simon Wiesenthal Center is urging anyone with information about the anti-Semitic incident to contact the Chicago PD or theMidwest offices of the Simon Wiesenthal Center,” said Alison Pure Slovin, SWC Midwest Director, adding, “This shocking incident took place on the anniversary of Kristallnacht, the Nazi pogromthat destroyed almost all synagogues across Germany in 1938. Many members of the Jewish community have family who lived through those horrors.”
“The Chicago Commission on Human Relations reported that hate crimes targeting Jews are up 75% in the city ofChicago. But for our community, it is not just statistics, but the fear and anger such incidents generate,” Slovin added. She noted that members of the City Council of Chicago recentlypassed a resolution reaffirming their commitment to the Jewish community in the face of growing anti-Semitism.
For more information, please contact Alison Pure Slovin, Director, Midwest Region, Simon Wiesenthal Center at 708-714-0749 oraslovin@wiesenthal.com,
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The Simon Wiesenthal Center is an international Jewish human rights organization numbering over 400.000 members. Itholds consultative status at the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the Council of Europe, the OAS, and the Latin American Parliament (PARLATINO).
SWC Condemns Colombian Foreign Ministry's Anti-Israel Conference
July 14, 2025
The Simon Wiesenthal Center has denounced an international conference organized by the Colombian Foreign Ministry and slated forJuly 14-16 in Bogotá...