Political leaders condemn antisemitic flyers found in metro Atlanta driveways

Last week, Gov. Brian Kemp and other Georgia political leaders condemned a weekend outbreak of antisemitism in Atlanta’s northern suburbs after neighborhoods in Sandy Springs and Dunwoody found antisemitic flyers in their driveways on Sunday morning. 

Subdivisions affected include Oxford Chase, Meadowlake, and Dunwoody Club Forest, all neighborhoods located within walking distance from the Marcus Jewish Community Center and Congregation Ariel on Tilly Mill Road. 

One of the victims of the racist attack was freshman state Rep. Esther Panitch, D-Sandy Springs. Panitch and her colleagues gathered at a news conference where the acts were condemned. 

According to Panitch, “many” Jewish families in Fulton and DeKalb counties also received the flyers in their driveways. “Anti-Semites who seek to harm/intimidate Jews in Georgia – I’m coming for you with the weight of the state behind me,” Panitch warned in a Twitter post.

The state’s law enforcement resources were offered by Kemp to aid Sandy Springs and Dunwoody police departments in their investigation of the incidents. Said Kemp on Twitter, “This kind of hate has no place in our state, and the individuals responsible do not share Georgia’s values. We will always condemn acts of antisemitism.”

“The purpose of activities like this is to cause fear and to divide us. Dunwoody is a community that values our diversity and is home to people of a myriad of faiths, races, ethnicities, and more,” said Dunwoody Mayor Lynn Deutsch. He encouraged residents to contact the police if they have any information that would be helpful in finding the perpetrators. 

State Rep. John Carson, R-northeast Cobb, introduced a bill during the current legislative session establishing a definition of the term “antisemitism” for purposes of monitoring and investigating antisemitic incidents and developing policies to combat antisemitism.

Senate Minority Leader Gloria Butler, D-Stone Mountain, said,“No one — not one Georgian should ever wake up to hate.”  She praised the General Assembly for passing hate crimes legislation in 2020 after Black jogger Ahmaud Arbery was murdered by two white men near Brunswick. 

Dov Wilker, the Southeast Regional Director for the American Jewish Committee said, “These folks who perpetrate these type of attacks have one intention only and that’s to intimidate the communities where they’re basing themselves and so to notice that and see that they’re continuing to spread this anti-semitic hatred message is really painful.” 

Dunwoody Police Chief Billy Grogan said in a statement, “We are actively investigating this incident and working closely with the Sandy Springs Police Department, as their community was victimized as well. If you have any information related to this case, please contact 911.”