Chicago Community Left Shaken After Anti-Semitic Attack
A sense of unease settled over the Lake View neighborhood early New Year's Day after two men brutally assaulted a Jewish man, forcing him to be shoved through the front window of a local bagel shop. The attack, which police are now investigating as a possible hate crime, has left many in the community reeling.
The altercation began at a local bar where the victim, 27-year-old North Sider, was engaging in a discussion about religion with two men. As their conversation escalated, one of the individuals allegedly made several anti-Semitic remarks, claiming that the victim's "religion is killing people in Gaza" and "committing genocide." When confronted by the victim, the two men became belligerent and physically attacked him, knocking him to the ground before hurling him through the window of The Bagel Restaurant.
Witness Britt Nerad, 22, was across the street at a nearby restaurant when she witnessed the attack. Initially thinking it was a robbery, her concerns turned to fear as one of the attackers picked up a shard of glass, which he then used in an apparent attempt to harm the victim further. Although no injuries were sustained from the glass, Nerad reported that the victim appeared "shaken" and claimed that the attack was motivated by hate.
The victim suffered a cut to his right hand but was treated at Illinois Masonic Medical Center for what police described as non-life-threatening injuries. Both attackers fled the scene without facing arrest.
This incident is just the latest in a concerning trend of anti-Semitic attacks in Chicago. According to an annual report by the city's Commission on Human Relations, hate crimes based on a victim's testimony have increased by 58% from 2023 to 2024. The data highlights a growing concern for many in the community who are struggling to cope with rising levels of intolerance.
Police detectives in Area 3 are working to identify those responsible and bring them to justice. As one witness hopes, a conviction could serve as a deterrent against future hate crimes. "If it was motivated by hate, I'd really like to see people face some punishment for that because of how serious that is in the current climate of hate in the country," Nerad said.
A sense of unease settled over the Lake View neighborhood early New Year's Day after two men brutally assaulted a Jewish man, forcing him to be shoved through the front window of a local bagel shop. The attack, which police are now investigating as a possible hate crime, has left many in the community reeling.
The altercation began at a local bar where the victim, 27-year-old North Sider, was engaging in a discussion about religion with two men. As their conversation escalated, one of the individuals allegedly made several anti-Semitic remarks, claiming that the victim's "religion is killing people in Gaza" and "committing genocide." When confronted by the victim, the two men became belligerent and physically attacked him, knocking him to the ground before hurling him through the window of The Bagel Restaurant.
Witness Britt Nerad, 22, was across the street at a nearby restaurant when she witnessed the attack. Initially thinking it was a robbery, her concerns turned to fear as one of the attackers picked up a shard of glass, which he then used in an apparent attempt to harm the victim further. Although no injuries were sustained from the glass, Nerad reported that the victim appeared "shaken" and claimed that the attack was motivated by hate.
The victim suffered a cut to his right hand but was treated at Illinois Masonic Medical Center for what police described as non-life-threatening injuries. Both attackers fled the scene without facing arrest.
This incident is just the latest in a concerning trend of anti-Semitic attacks in Chicago. According to an annual report by the city's Commission on Human Relations, hate crimes based on a victim's testimony have increased by 58% from 2023 to 2024. The data highlights a growing concern for many in the community who are struggling to cope with rising levels of intolerance.
Police detectives in Area 3 are working to identify those responsible and bring them to justice. As one witness hopes, a conviction could serve as a deterrent against future hate crimes. "If it was motivated by hate, I'd really like to see people face some punishment for that because of how serious that is in the current climate of hate in the country," Nerad said.
this anti-semitic attack is just so senseless and its not okay at all 
like whats wrong with ppl these days? u dont have to agree with someone else's beliefs to be respectful lol and its a bagel shop for crying out loud who attacks a person over a bagel shop? anyway i think its great that the police are working hard to catch the ppl responsible and hopefully they get some serious punishment 
And now this... a Jewish guy gettin brutally assaulted in broad daylight? No way, fam 
. I mean, what's next? Gonna be a hate crime against... *insert random minority group here*? 
We gotta do better than this! Everyone deserves respect & equality, regardless of their background or beliefs 
. Police need to step up their game & catch those perpetrators ASAP 
. Can't let hate win like that 
.
. Like, what's wrong with ppl these days? A bagel shop attack? That's just gross 
. It's like, we're in a world where ppl are still mad at each other over this kinda stuff 
.
, but this is just another level of crazy 
. The fact that the attackers got away without facing charges? That's messed up 
.
. And what's with the lack of support from the community? Like, where was everyone when this guy got attacked? 
We need to be more understanding and empathetic towards each other 
. Anywayz, let's hope justice is served soon 
. But at the same time, I don't want to be a total hypocrite and say that the attackers should've been caught because... well, they weren't 
. But maybe this will be a wake-up call for everyone to take a closer look at what's happening in our community? 
it's getting to be where people are walking around with their heads down for fear of being targeted... 
58% increase in anti-Semitic attacks in Chicago? That's just staggering 
and I hope they do bring them to justice 
like, dont they understand hatin is a choice? we need to take a stand & call out the hate wherever it is comin from 
so let's keep the vibes high & keep fightin against hate, fam 
... gotta be a better way to deal with our differences than resorting to hate and violence 
. They need to take these cases seriously and catch the culprits ASAP 
. Until then, we just have to keep educating ourselves and others about the dangers of hate speech 
. #AntiHate #Chicago #JusticeForAll 
... And if you think it's only Chicago, 67% of Jewish Americans say they're more likely to be targeted because of their faith, not just because of where they live 
... And most of those crimes targeted Jewish people 
... The victims are often ordinary people trying to go about their lives without being harassed or attacked 
... We need more efforts from law enforcement and community leaders to tackle this growing issue