Mother says 13-year-old New Canaan boy was jumped, shoved in antisemitic attack

Lori Leibowitz says her son Ben was walking near the New Canaan Library with his friends when another child allegedly attacked him from behind and told him to "go back to Jew-land."

News 12 Staff

May 22, 2021, 12:39 AM

Updated 1,207 days ago

Share:

A New Canaan mother is bringing to light a frightening attack against her 13-year-old son -- she says he was shoved to the ground and called an antisemitic slur.
Lori Leibowitz says her son Ben was walking near the New Canaan Library with his friends when another child allegedly attacked him from behind and told him to "go back to Jew-land."
"It's happening everywhere and that's the sad part of this story," she said.
The incident happened on April 1, according to Leibowitz, and she says it was an unprovoked attack that left her son emotionally and physically shaken up.
Ben was left with a swollen elbow and had to sit out of baseball for several weeks.
Leibowitz says she called 911 and reported the incident to New Canaan police immediately. New Canaan Police confirm an incident was reported, but it involved juveniles and cannot release further information at this time.
But after sharing her post on Facebook and seeing the support from the community, she wants to bring awareness to the realities the Jewish community faces.
"Yes, this is a horrible thing that happened. But what can we do about it? If you see it happening, you need to stick up for your friends. You need to say something and you need to let the person know it's not OK," she said. "You have to be careful, and you have to be kind of diligent and make sure your kids know that there are going to be people who don't like you because of your religion."
The Anti-Defamation League says there's been an uptick of 193 antisemitic incidents in the United States in the last week since a recent outbreak of violence happening in the Middle East.
"It's really important to talk to your children about anti-Semitism. You may think it's not going to happen in your community, but it is still happening," Leibowitz said.