STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A sign located on the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Boardwalk in South Beach was defaced recently with messages of hate.
Among the markings scribbled onto the public signage was a large swastika, the emblem of the Nazi party.
The sign, which shows a map of the East Shore waterfront, is situated on the boardwalk across from the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex.
A sign on the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Boardwalk in South Beach was found visibly defaced on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025.(Advance/SILive.com | Luke Peteley)
In addition to the swastika, “Jews did COVID” and “Mamdani is Gay” were also written onto the sign with what appeared to be marker ink.
The defaced sign was first discovered by the Advance/SILive.com early Tuesday morning.
By 11 a.m. the markings had yet to be removed.
“Any kind of antisemitism is a disgrace,” said Laura Steffensen, a resident of Great Kills who was walking on the boardwalk on Tuesday morning.
Displaying a swastika is a criminal offense punishable by New York State law.
Concerns of antisemitism
Earlier this month, campaign signs on the North Shore were found with a smattering of red handprints in an act of vandalism. The head of Staten Island’s Republican Party called it a “despicable act” of antisemitism against two Jewish candidates.”
Earlier this year, the Advance/SILive.com reported an alleged antisemitic incident involving a man walking home in Tomkinsville on April 25.
The 55-year-old man told police that three males approached him, said, “hey, Jew,” punched him in the head multiple times, and brandished a firearm before fleeing in an unknown direction.
And in another incident, police arrested a 17-year-old boy on Nov. 15 after he allegedly knocked a religious cap off the head of a man in Willowbrook.
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