Ilana Glazer Political Event Canceled After Brooklyn Synagogue Hit With Anti-Semitic Graffiti

By Cynthia Littleton

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – A political event hosted by “Broad City” star Ilana Glazer was canceled Thursday night after a Brooklyn synagogue was hit with anti-Semitic graffiti.

Glazer had planned to host a forum at Union Temple in the Prospect Heights area of Brooklyn in which she was to interview candidates in two tough Congressional races: Andrew Gournardes of South Brooklyn and Jim Gaughran of Long Island. It was also designed to connect volunteers to canvassing detail on behalf of various candidates on the weekend before the momentous Nov. 6 midterm elections.

The graffiti included hate speech written in black marker, according to WCBS-TV New York, and included the phrase “Kill all Jews,” according to other local media reports. The decision was made by organizers and temple leaders to cancel the evening event out of safety concerns at a time of rising incidents of hate crimes and anti-Semitism in particular. Last Saturday, 11 members of the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh were killed by a gunman who allegedly shouted anti-Semitic statements.

“Last night, we were ready to generate stories and conversations and turn them into action. We had beautiful, bright people ready to canvas– knock on doors for the local elections– and help candidates who stand up for human rights win,” Glazer said in a prepared statement. “Then, the Generator community experienced, together, how white supremacy, anti-Semitism and racism silences human rights politics and halts progress. But they won’t stop us from communicating, canvassing, and voting. We will continue to learn, organize, and act and make this country as safe for as many people as possible.”

A woman who planned to attend the event posted a video on Instagram of Glazer announcing the cancellation. “Thank you for coming and caring and following your curiosity,” Glazer said. “This is action in itself, gathering.”

The event was scheduled to take place at the  Murmrr Theatre , located inside the temple’s main room. The theater also hosts concerts, comedy and other events: the next scheduled event is for the Call Your Girlfriend podcast on Saturday night, followed by a reading by “Roots” star Levar Burton on Saturday and concerts in the coming weeks by indie/alternative artists including Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy, OCS, Cass McCombs, Kimbra, and Arcade Fire’s Richard Reed Parry.