New Jersey Attorney-General Gurbir S. Grewal said the page “Rise Up Ocean County” is full of hateful comments that could escalate, according to a report by the Asbury Park Press.
The page, which was created last year, “uses real problems in the Jewish community as a way to spread Jew hatred. It’s baked into pretty much everything they do,” according to one explanation posted on Facebook.
“Far too often, we have seen how hateful comments can escalate to hateful conduct,” the A-G told the press. “Our Division on Civil Rights is committed to fighting this rising tide of hate, and we’ll continue taking proactive steps to make New Jersey a more welcoming community for people of all backgrounds and faiths.”
New Jersey officials wrote a letter to Facebook asking that the social media giant review the page and consider action. Among those signed on the letter were Division of Civil Rights Director Rachel Wainer Apter. She told The Jewish Voice that the officials were not asking Facebook for any specific action, but the county just wants to make sure that something is done to protect area Jews.
Among the posts on the Rise Up Ocean County page are statements like, “We need to get rid of them like Hitler did,” or “...The gang war has begun. I have my mac11 loaded.”
The page has about 10,000 followers. The identities of the administrators are unknown.
Lakewood is a hub of Orthodox Judaism and is home to one of the largest yeshivas in the world, the 6,500-student Beth Medrash Govoha, which was founded by Rabbi Aharon Kotler.