The Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia was vandalized on Thursday at around 8:15 p.m., when a man wrote an antisemitic inscription on the OY/YO sculpture outside the building, according to Philadelphia police.
Philadelphia Jewish history museum vandalized with antisemitic inscription
The Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia was vandalized on Thursday at around 8:15 p.m., when a man wrote an antisemitic inscription on the OY/YO sculpture outside the building, according to Philadelphia police.
The OY/YO sculpture, created by Jewish artist Deborah Kass, is made of aluminum and stands about eight feet tall and roughly 16 feet wide. From one side it reads 'YO,' a greeting associated with Philadelphia; from the other it reads 'OY,' a Yiddish exclamation. According to Kass, the work was intended to express the American promise of equality and the shared responsibility to fight hatred and division.
The museum is situated in Old City, Philadelphia's historic district, near Independence National Historical Park, which includes Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell.
Police obtained surveillance footage of the suspect carrying out the vandalism before he boarded a train at a nearby station. The inscription has since been removed, but no arrest has been made. Officers asked anyone with information to contact them. The exact wording of the inscription has not been released.
Pennsylvania state Rep. Tarik Khan, a Democrat, spotted the vandalism and reported it to police. Khan is a member of the Pennsylvania Jewish Legislative Caucus and describes himself as a 'Muslim kid who grew up in a Jewish neighborhood, with a Catholic mother.'
The incident occurred approximately one year after the museum's facade, plaza, and a large Israeli flag above the words 'Weitzman Stands With Israel' were twice sprayed with red paint in August of the prior year. Leroy Hayes, 33, later turned himself in to police and was charged with ethnic intimidation, criminal mischief, and possession of an instrument of crime in connection with those incidents.
Andrew Goretsky, senior regional director of the Anti-Defamation League in Philadelphia, said recorded incidents of antisemitic vandalism in Pennsylvania rose from 29 in 2022 to 80 in 2025.
- The source does not state the exact wording of the antisemitic inscription.
- The source does not identify the suspect by name or provide a description beyond what was captured on surveillance footage.
- The source does not include any statement from the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History.
- The source does not state whether charges have been filed or are anticipated in connection with this incident.
- The source does not indicate the current case status of Leroy Hayes following his charges from the prior year's vandalism incidents.
Read the original at The Jerusalem Post