Volunteers cleaned up racist and antisemitic graffiti at beloved Glenside ‘cheese’ playground
Someone sprayed swastikas and an anti-Black slur all over the playground — including the iconic cheese sculpture, a volunteer said. A rally is planned for Thursday at the playground.
Parts of an Abington School District playground may still need work after volunteers cleaned racist and antisemitic graffiti off the structures over the weekend.
Volunteers joined township and school district staff on Saturday morning to scrub off red, spray-painted swastikas and an anti-Black slur at the recently renovated Glenside Weldon playground. A community rally at the site is planned for Thursday.
Abington Township police announced Saturday they’re investigating the incident, and urged anyone with information to contact the department.
The neighbors who showed up Saturday to clean off the graffiti included Glenside Civic Association president Krystn Kuckelman, who led efforts to restore the beloved park before it reopened in 2022.
Glenside cheese sculpture defaced
Residents, local businesses, and officials raised almost $80,000 to restore the playground, Kuckelman said — including an iconic sculpture that became the symbol of the campaign.
Known as “The Cheese,” the concrete yellow playwall has delighted children for decades, local residents say. Rosalie Guzofsky, executive director of the Abington Art Center, who consulted on preserving the structure during renovations, said it was designed by prominent mid-century sculptor Jim Miller-Melberg.
The Cheese and a map mural on the pavement created by a local artist were both vandalized and need a fresh coat of paint, Kuckelman said Monday. A playground sign was also defaced.
“Today was one of my saddest day[s],” Kuckelman wrote to the school board president in a Facebook comment on Saturday.
Rally planned at Glenside Weldon playground
The antisemitic symbol and anti-Black slur “are reminders of the worst behavior of human beings over the last 500 years,” the Salem Baptist Church of Abington wrote on social media.
Faith leaders, neighbors, and local officials plan to gather at the playground for a unity rally on Thursday at 5:30 p.m., according to a flyer shard by a township commissioner, Matt Vahey, to “reclaim a shared community space from hate.”
Inquirer Greater Abington
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