Graffiti
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A man wearing a swastika armband ripped apart a sign on the YWCA in Alliance, Ohio that denounced anti-Semitic graffiti spray painted on the building and other parts of the city in July.

Footage taken by a surveillance camera at the YWCA shows a man wearing a baseball hat, lightly colored clothes, gloves and a swastika armband taking down the sign from the side of the building on August 12 at 11 p.m.

The suspect used a knife to cut the sign down, and can be seen in the video cutting the sign apart as he walks away.

The director of Alliance YWCA, Stacie Weimer, told The Repository that the an employee noticed the next morning that the sign was gone.

They had installed security cameras after anti-Semitic graffiti was discovered on July 13 spray painted onto the building by a local resident.

The graffiti consisted of a Star of David with a red circle and a slash through it.

Simultaneously, other parts of Alliance, including the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Viaduct, were tagged with similar graffiti that also contained vulgar words and a white supremacist slogan. A few weeks later, someone again defaced the image of Martin Luther King on the viaduct, painting over the eyes.

The YWCA’s sign, which said “Hate has no place here,” was in response to the anti-Semitic and hate graffiti.

The theft of the sign was reported to the police who are investigating, according to a police report.

Weimer told The Repository that the police found the torn sign in a dumpster in a lot adjacent to the YWCA.

"It is very upsetting, very disturbing that someone has that much hate toward an organization that's entire mission is to dispel hate," she said.

The same sign was also stolen on July 22, before the building had security cameras installed.

Earlier in August, the Alliance YWCA held a rally in response to the hate vandalism, with more than 100 people showing up in solidarity.

“We are dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. The Alliance YWCA will continue to stay the course of this mission,” said Alliance YWCA in a Facebook post.