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Local leaders discuss anti-Semitism incidents in town hall meeting

Posted at 10:22 PM, May 22, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-22 22:23:26-04

Beth Krolik just moved from Chicago to Palm Beach County a few weeks ago. She's worried about the anti-Semitism incidents in her new hometown.

"I hear about these hate crimes and you know it's a little scary. So I wanted to see what the local law enforcement what some of the representatives have to say," she said.

Speaking to a crowd of 200, the FDLE, PBSO and Homeland Security shared "if you see something, say something."

"We live here, we work here. Your security concerns are our security concerns," said one of the leaders. 

Along with local leaders, law enforcement talked about how they work to catch people responsible for incidents. Among the recent incidents, some Jewish centers were in lockdown around the country receiving bomb threats over the phone. And a swastika was painted on a car in a Boca Raton neighborhood.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, in Florida there were 137 incidents of anti-Semitism in 2016. So far in 2017, 41 cases reported.

"We know that the community is wanting to take a more active role in what is going on and that obviously helps us in the long run because there is more eyes and ears out there for us reporting things to us," Eric Jester, an FDLE Special Agent Supervisor.

"And I think we need to come together as people all people, not just Jews but all people and address these issues," added Beth Krolik.