Block Club Chicago: Woman Charged With Hate Crime After Pro-Palestine Mural Vandalized In Pilsen, Police Say
A close-up of a Palestinian-Mexican mural at West 16th Street and South Ashland Avenue shows the face of the Palestinian man, which was defaced last month, as seen on July 10, 2025. Credit: Francia Garcia Hernandez/Block Club Chicago
PILSEN — A Pilsen woman has been charged with a hate crime in the assault of two neighbors and the defacement of a pro-Palestinian mural in the neighborhood, according to police.
Danielle Wasserman, 37, is facing two felony hate crime counts and other assault-related charges in two separate instances where the mural was defaced — and where neighbors were assaulted trying to stop the vandalization, police and prosecutors said.
The mural near West 16th Street and South Ashland Avenue depicts Palestinian and Mexican men resting in a peace garden. It was painted by Palestinian artist Taqi Spateen.
Around 11 p.m. May 9, a Pilsen neighbor was walking on South Ashland Avenue when they saw Wasserman dumping trash from a brown paper-like bag onto the ground near the mural, prosecutors said in charging documents. The neighbor, who identified as L.J. in a June press conference, crossed the street and confronted Wasserman while attempting to record a video on her phone, prosecutors said at Wasserman’s court appearance Friday.
The neighbor recognized Wasserman from an Instagram post where she was seen harassing other neighbors at the mural, and the two exchanged words, L.J. previously said.
Wasserman hit the neighbor’s phone from their hand and hit the neighbor’s wrists, body and head, prosecutors said. Wasserman said she is Jewish and showed L.J. a star of David necklace she was wearing, prosecutors said, according to charging documents.
L.J. began walking away and crossed the street, but Wasserman followed and began hitting L.J., prosecutors said. L.J. fell to the ground and Wasserman got on top of them and straddled them. Wasserman then began strangling L.J. with a keffiyeh they were wearing.
L.J. managed to get loose and ran away as Wasserman followed them on foot until L.J. jumped over a fence, according to prosecutors.
A Palestinian-Mexican mural at West 16th Street and South Ashland Avenue, as seen on July 10, 2025. Credit: Francia Garcia Hernandez/Block Club Chicago
At 11:55 p.m. June 13, Natalie Figueroa was riding her bicycle home from work in Pilsen when she observed the mural had white letters on it that weren’t previously there, prosecutors said.
Figueroa stopped and saw Wasserman wearing dark colored clothes with her hood pulled up. She was painting a message about Israel on the mural with white paint, prosecutors said. Figueroa got off her bike and started recording Wasserman, asking if she was there to support genocide, prosecutors said.
Wasserman responded, “You’re welcome,” before grabbing her belongings and walking away, prosecutors said. Figueroa followed Wasserman, attempting to record and get a photo of her face. Wasserman then swung a metal three-hole punch and hit Figueroa in the side of her head. Figueroa fell to the ground and Wasserman straddled and pinned her to the ground. The incident was captured on surveillance video, prosecutors said.
A witness saw Figueroa on the ground with Wasserman pinning her down. The witness took a video and called 911. Police arrived and spoke with Figueroa and Wasserman, who left on foot, prosecutors said.
Multiple witnesses identified Wasserman as the woman who attacked Figueroa and previously harassed neighbors when the mural was painted, prosecutors said.
Wasserman turned herself into police Tuesday, prosecutors said. She is facing two felony counts of a hate crime, two counts of aggravated battery in a public place, one count of aggravated battery and strangling, one count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and one count of criminal property damage, police said.
Wasserman appeared in court Friday and was ordered to be detained in jail, said human rights lawyer Farah Chalisa, who represents the victims.
Wasserman’s arrest came after victims, officials and organizers the Chicago Council on American-Islamic Relations, called for police to charge her with a hate crime and assault over the attacks on the two victims. When it comes to violent crimes against Palestinians, Muslim-Americans and their allies, there is usually a gap in accountability, but Wasserman’s arrest is a step toward justice, Chalisa said.
“I’m glad we are seeing accountability and we are seeing the government take this action seriously and call out the hate for what it is,” Chalisa said. “Pilsen really came out and showed that when the community stands together, we can push towards justice even where previously it might have been denied.”