Hoax Alert: Desperate in Davis (2024)
Continuing on with our examination of so-called ‘anti-Semitic hate crimes’ we have the recent occurrence in the city of Davis in California. Where according to Lauren Keene of ‘The Davis Enterprise’ the following has occurred:
‘Davis police received several reports of anti-Semitic hate crimes in recent days, adding to two reports of Israeli flag vandalisms that occurred the week before.
At about 9 p.m. Wednesday, someone removed an Israeli flag from outside an East Davis home, Lt. Mike Munoz said Friday.
“It was ripped down and stolen,” Munoz said. Caught on security camera, the suspect appeared to be a different person than the man who used a large knife to cut down another Israeli flag in East Davis during the early hours of April 12.
A third flag was reported vandalized around that same time at an L Street residence.’ (1)
We should firstly note that vandalism of American flags in California is only sometimes treated as a ‘potential hate crime’, (2) while in the city of Sacramento – next to the city of Davis – this isn’t considered a ‘hate crime’. (3)
Thus, it is extremely instructive concerning jewish power in the United States that vandalising an Israeli flag is considered a serious ‘hate crime’ where-as vandalising the American flag is broadly considered an acceptable statement of political protest.
The logic that Davis police are using is outlined by Keene as follows:
‘Following the earlier flag vandalisms, the Davis Police Department posted a photo of the suspect in April 12 incident, noting that “both incidents are being investigated as hate crimes because it is believed the crimes were meant to terrorize the residents of these homes because of actual or perceived religious beliefs.’ (4)
This ‘logic’ is clearly bogus because these are Israeli flags are not signs of Judaism and you don’t have to jewish to have an Israeli flag displayed at your house let alone follow any form of Judaism. It would be arguable if it was actually a specific jewish ritual object like a Mezuzah on the door post, but since these are just Israeli flags it is not.
Rather what we are seeing here is the use of Israel’s jewishness as an excuse to clamp down on free speech as well as political protest rather than a legitimate crime.
These cases of vandalism against Israeli flags are apparently part of wider trend of so-called ‘anti-Semitic hate crimes’ in Davis since we are also told by Keene that:
‘Meanwhile, police received a report Thursday of two swastikas being spray-painted on Davis High School property. On Friday morning, police took a report of an anti-Semitic message spray-painted across the rear of a building along H Street between Second and Third streets.
Both acts of graffiti are being investigated as hate crimes, Munoz confirmed. As of Friday afternoon, no suspects in any of the incidents had been identified.’ (5)
So, the assumption here – which may or may not be true – is that the swastikas and the Israeli flag vandalism are connected. This is tenuous but reasonable as a line of inquiry but to investigate these as ‘anti-Semitic hate crimes’ is ludicrous since the Israeli flag vandalism is clearly vandalism but as a political protest and the swastikas could mean anything and could just as well have been done by someone for shock value – as they often are – rather than from any ‘anti-Semitic’ motive.
The reality is that these occurrences in Davis are unlikely to be ‘anti-Semitic hate crimes’ but rather political protest and/or typical ‘shock value’ graffiti like ‘Hail Satan’ and pentagrams used to be in the 1980s.
References
(1) https://www.davisenterprise.com/townnews/judaism/more-anti-semitic-hate-crimes-reported-to-davis-police/article_099e0786-fe90-11ee-9d00-bb8603528b7d.html
(2) For example: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-10-23/hate-crime-investigation-after-flag-burned-at-west-hills-home; https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2021/09/08/california-flag-memorial-to-13-slain-us-troops-vandalized/
(3) For example: https://www.foxnews.com/us/vandals-torch-american-flags-in-front-of-homes-near-sacramento-in-california
(4) https://www.davisenterprise.com/townnews/judaism/more-anti-semitic-hate-crimes-reported-to-davis-police/article_099e0786-fe90-11ee-9d00-bb8603528b7d.html
(5) Ibid.