The Ottawa Police Service is investigating a disturbing act of vandalism at Canada’s National Holocaust Monument as a potential hate crime, after the memorial was defaced with red paint last weekend.
Cleanup crews were dispatched early last Monday morning to the site, located along the Kichi Zibi Mikan near downtown Ottawa, after the graffiti was discovered. A photo shared with local media showed the phrase “FEED ME” scrawled in large red letters across part of the concrete structure.
The Hate and Bias Crime Unit of the Ottawa Police Service has taken the lead on the investigation. In a statement released last Monday, the department confirmed: “The Ottawa Police Service (OPS) is investigating an act of vandalism that occurred overnight at the National Holocaust Monument, located at 1918 Chaudière Crossing. The monument was defaced with red paint. The Hate and Bias Crime Unit is actively leading the investigation and urges anyone with information to contact their tip line…”
The National Holocaust Monument, which opened in 2017, is a federally designated space honoring the memory of the six million Jews murdered during the Holocaust, as well as the millions of other victims persecuted by the Nazi regime. The site is meant to serve as a place of remembrance and education, standing as a stark architectural reminder of the atrocities committed and the importance of ensuring history is not forgotten.
Community leaders and national officials swiftly condemned the act. Adam Silver, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Ottawa, stated on social media: “This is not just vandalism; it is an act of desecration against the memory of six million Jews and millions of other victims murdered in the Holocaust. It is an attack on Holocaust remembrance and on the dignity of survivors, their families, and our entire community.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney weighed in on the incident as well, calling the vandalism “reprehensible” in a statement on X. “Canada stands firmly against antisemitism and hate in all its forms,” Carney wrote. “We will not allow the memory of the Holocaust to be erased or disrespected.”
Appalled by the National Holocaust Memorial being vandalized by graffiti overnight.
This is a monument that commemorates the six million Jewish lives murdered during the Holocaust, and the millions of other victims of Nazi Germany. It is a space for mourning and remembrance,…
— Mark Carney (@MarkJCarney) June 9, 2025
The Ottawa Police Service is asking anyone with information about the incident or potential surveillance footage in the area to contact their Hate and Bias Crime Unit tip line. The investigation remains ongoing.
(AI was used in part to facilitate this article.)
