By Mike LaBella
Staff Writer
July 19, 2008 12:04 am HAVERHILL — When Rabbi Ira Korinow arrived at Temple Emanu-El last Saturday for Sabbath services, he was mortified and sickened by what he found. Someone had spread feces on the door handle to the entrance of the Main Street temple. The city's houses of worship have been the target of vandalism and bigotry for years, and this latest incident is being called a particularly ugly hate crime against all Haverhill residents, regardless of their religious background. Members of the Greater Haverhill Civil Rights Commission were so outraged that they had an emergency meeting mid-week to discuss how they would address the situation. The Rev. Marcus Crapsey, spiritual leader of Trinity Episcopal Church on White Street, and a vice chairman of the commission, said this kind of hatred cannot be tolerated and should be abhorred by all citizens, not only those in the religious community. "We cannot dismiss this as merely stupidity," Crapsey said. "It's an ugly criminal act and it needs to be taken seriously as an attack on all of the people of Greater Haverhill. I think to dismiss it is simply out of bounds as when this kind of ugliness is directed at any house of worship, it needs to be seen as an example of bigotry and responded to as such." The commission issued a statement Thursday saying members, as well as the Haverhill Police Department, view this attack on the temple as a "cowardly hate crime." "The Greater Haverhill Civil Rights Commission views this act as an attack on our neighbors at Temple Emanu-El, the Jewish People, and all residents of the Greater Haverhill area," Crapsey wrote. "We support the Haverhill Police Department and its investigation of this attack on our neighbors, and hope that the person or persons responsible for this ugliness will be brought to justice. We trust that all residents of our area join us in condemning this attack. There is simply no place for hatred in our community." Deputy police Chief Donald Thompson said those found guilty of a hate crime could be punished by up to two and a half years in a house of correction and a fine of up to $2,000. "I've assigned extra patrols to check on the temple and we've assigned the case to a detective who handles civil rights violations," Thompson said. "We're taking this very seriously. We've dealt with people in the neighborhood before." On Dec. 26, 2005, vandals hurled a plastic bag filled with a red substance at the front doors of the temple and cut an electrical cord that powered the temple's outdoor menorah during Hanukkah. Two boys, one 12 and the other 15 years old, were arrested and charged with vandalizing the temple. Police said the boys lived near the temple. Crapsey said that in recent years there has been a string of vandalism against houses of worship, including attacks on the temple, Calvary Baptist Church and the Ward Hill Church. "The attack on the Ward Hill Church of Christ The King, which was a few years ago, was particularly ugly as someone painted Wiccan symbols and signs on the Christian church, which was objected to by the Christian community and the Wiccan community, as they don't like their symbols being used in this way."
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