Red Paint Is Thrown on the Statue of Slain Activist

Red paint was found splattered Thursday on the 9-foot statue of Alex Odeh, the Palestinian American activist killed in a 1985 bombing, and police are treating the case as a hate crime.

Police received an anonymous call at 4:30 a.m. reporting the vandalism in front of the Santa Ana Central Library. Red paint was thrown on the patina finish, and two sets of red footprints led from the statue toward the curb.

Last October, vandals did the same thing, throwing red paint on the statue. Police are investigating the crimes and have no suspects, Sgt. Bob Clark said. They also have notified the FBI.

FBI special agent Gary Morley said the “information is being included in the investigation of the Odeh bombing.”

Erected in 1994, the statue depicts Odeh in a robe, holding a book and a dove. Odeh was killed when a bomb exploded in the Santa Ana offices of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee. Michael Shehadeh, who is now regional director for the group, said Thursday, “For some group of people to try and dehumanize and smear our icons, such as Alex’s statue, means a great deal: that they don’t believe in the ideals of the United States and living in harmony.”

Yousef Elia Haddad, president of the San Fernando Valley-based Arab-American Democratic Club, said he believes that the vandals “want to spread fear in our hearts so that we don’t speak our opinions.”

Rabbi Arnold Rachlis of the University Synagogue in Irvine, who had spoken at the statue’s unveiling, said that if the vandalism “was political, [Odeh’s relatives] and I have a common enemy.”