Racial Slurs Scrawled on Jackie Robinson Statue

A Jackie Robinson statue in Brooklyn has been targeted by vandals, who used a black marker to scribble racial slurs and a swastika on the monument. The graffiti includes the n-word as well as "anti-Semitic comments," police say. The statue, which features fellow player Pee Wee Reese putting his arm around Robinson, stands outside the Brooklyn Cyclones' minor league stadium in Coney Island, USA Today reports. The vandalism is under investigation by the NYPD's Hate Crimes Task Force, CNN notes, while the team and police check surveillance video for clues on the perpetrator.

The New York Daily News, meanwhile, is offering a $10,000 reward for information on the incident. Sen. Chuck Schumer visited the statue, the paper notes, saying, "I hope you’re punished for what you did because (it) put a dagger in the heart of what America is all about." The statue commemorates a moment in 1947 when Robinson faced a crowd yelling racial slurs. Reese, the shortstop, headed to Robinson at first base and put his arm around him, silencing the crowd. Much of the graffiti has now been cleaned off, though a bag remains covering part of the statue's base. (More Jackie Robinson stories.)