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So, there was a swastika at my Airbnb

JL;DR SUMMARY PJ Grisar reflects on the historical and cultural perceptions of the swastika after encountering one on the floor of a rented mansion, originally inlaid in 1866 before its appropriation by the Nazis. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

IdentityJewish HistoryJewish IdentityDiwaliHolocaust MemoryCultural AppropriationSwastikaSymbolismEastern SymbolismNazi Appropriation

Places mentioned

Toronto, Ontario, Canada
"Diyas (lamps) in a swastika pattern by a shrine to the Goddess Lakshmi during the festival of Diwali at a Hindu temple in Toronto, Nov. 7, 2018."
Newburgh, New York, United States
"Staying in a historic mansion (h/t Airbnb) in Newburgh, New York, I felt transported into a game of Clue, minus the murder."
India
"At the wedding, I made the possible faux pas of mentioning the floors to friends of ours, one of whom grew up in India."
United States
"(In most schools in the U.S., the only time students hear anything about Jews is in a unit on the Holocaust.)"

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Cairo Item ID 67005
Cairo Source ID 35
Retrieved 2025-11-15 05:31:04 UTC
Curated 2025-11-15 08:30:26 UTC