Ottawa U: 9 foot Minorah stolen, found trashed in a dumpster.

Below is a feel good story in the Ottawa Citizen about how someone stole a 9 foot menorah from Ottawa U and now students are rallying to raise funds to build a new one. However what the story does not say, is that according to a tipster to Vlad, it was trashed and left in a dumpster. Police are trying to decide if it is a hate crime.

Eeyore

By Tony Lofaro, The Ottawa Citizen December 1, 2010

Jewish students at the University of Ottawa have rallied to build a new menorah after one was stolen from the university grounds on the weekend.

A three-metre menorah set up last week outside the UniCentre went missing on Saturday just days before the Jewish holiday of Hannukah, which is today. The menorah was later found in front of the Father & Sons restaurant on Osgoode Street, near the university campus.

The metal and wire religious structure was too badly damaged and could not be returned.

“It’s all smashed up, it was part of a student prank,” said Rabbi Chaim Boyarsky, the university’s rabbi.

Two unidentified individuals were captured on security cameras carting away the religious symbol.

Boyarsky said a fundraising campaign launched after the theft has so far raised about $800 donated by students.

It’s the third year the menorah has been erected on campus.

“We never had any problems before,” said Boyarsky. “We respect everyone’s culture and we really want our culture to be respected as well.”

He said the eight-branched candelabra is normally shipped from Brooklyn, New York and Jewish students at the university volunteer to assemble it. But there was no time to get a new one from the U.S. prior to the Jewish holiday, he said.

“The students are building a new one, it will be two feet bigger than the other menorah,” said Boyarsky, adding the students purchased the building materials.

“The irony of this is that students came out in big numbers to help and some of them were not even involved before.”

He said the menorah will be up in the same spot in time for today’s holiday.

© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

Read more: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/life/Stolen+menorah+lights+student+fundraising+drive/3908596/story.html#ixzz16szY5B6u

About Eeyore

Canadian artist and counter-jihad and freedom of speech activist as well as devout Schrödinger's catholic

5 Replies to “Ottawa U: 9 foot Minorah stolen, found trashed in a dumpster.”

  1. It;s only a so-called ‘hate crime’ if it allegedly perpetrated against a practitioner of ‘The Religion Of Peace’.

  2. All hate crimes need to be eliminated as legislation and now. Judges always had discretion to determine how motive would factor into sentencing. This was vandalism. If it turns out to be idiots who had no idea, then its vandalism and not important. If it was Muslims or leftists who did it for political reasons then it becomes a host of other things that motivated vandalism and theft and sentence can be adjusted accordingly. But there is no excuse for thought crimes.

  3. Eeyore, you this right, if you look at them from the proper angle all crimes are hate crimes, and if I kill someone because they have money I want is that some how less evil then killing them because I don’t like their skin color, religion, or sexual orientation? Hate crimes are just an excuse for some politically correct left winger to use to persecute some person or group he/she doesn’t like.

  4. Kudos to the brave people who re-constructed the menorah.

    And brickbats (and more) to those who destroyed the previous one.

    Without the ethical constructs which have evolved within Judaism and Christianity, the modern world would not be where it is today. Human rights in the west would essentially be the same as it is within Islam: mired in the Dark Ages.