The Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History (Photo credit: Barry Halkin/Halkin Photography)
In August 2025, the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History was vandalized with red spray paint on its facade, plaza and on an Israeli flag outside the building.
About a year later, the museum, which is seeking to become the official educational repository of Jewish history in America through the Smithsonian Institution, was vandalized again.
This time, an “unidentified white male” scribbled an “offensive message” on the OY/YO sculpture outside the Weitzman, according to the Philadelphia Police Department, as reported by JNS.
The incident happened on Aug. 13 around 8:11 p.m. Surveillance footage revealed the man approached the museum, committed the act and then boarded a train a few minutes later.
The police department is still trying to find the suspect and make an arrest. It is also in the process of determining whether to classify the incident as a hate crime.
Graffiti from the act is no longer visible, according to a 6abc report.
In an interview with 6abc, Andrew Goretsky, the senior regional director of the Anti-Defamation League’s Philadelphia office, noted that the ADL’s annual audit of antisemitic incidents found that incidents of vandalism more than doubled across Pennsylvania between 2022 and 2025.
“This is incredibly frustrating, but unfortunately not surprising,” he said.
jsaffren@midatlanticmedia.com