Outside the Kneseth Israel Synagogue in Annapolis, a fresh coat of white paint covered the spot where vandals had spray-painted a swastika and anti-Semitic slogans a few days before. But inside, the image was slow to fade.
"What type of person would come out at night to paint hate?" asked Esther Rosenblatt, as she stood in the stained-glass sanctuary of the synagogue where she has worshiped for the past 49 years. "Who would do such a thing?"
The question is reverberating in this community, which over the span of six weeks has been shaken by at least five hate crimes.
State police believe that the string of hate crimes in Annapolis and south Anne Arundel County stems from a Ku Klux Klan rally in October, spokesman Michael McKelvin said.
Since the rally, state police have encouraged increased patrols near the homes of two Annapolis officials as well as the State House and other government buildings.
Sgt. Terry Katz of the Criminal Investigation Division recommended the patrols at the homes of Mayor Alfred A. Hopkins, Alderman Carl O. Snowden and "other publicly identified 'anti-Klan leaders' " and the state buildings in a confidential memo after Klansmen complained of poor treatment at the hands of police during the demonstration.
The Nov. 4 memo, obtained by The Sun, was sent to Annapolis and Anne Arundel County police, Mr. McKelvin said.
Officer Randy Bell, an Anne Arundel County police spokesman, said he has "no doubt" city police responded with special patrols.
Officer Shelley C. White, an Annapolis police spokesman, would neither confirm nor deny whether the department had beefed up patrols around city officials' houses. But he said city police are trying to redirect their patrols to areas where racial and anti-Semitic incidents had been occurring.
Mr. McKelvin said state troopers are being "more vigilant."
"People who may be hanging out or driving around in circles, we are treating with an increased awareness," he said. "We are more vigilant about those people who are being a little more mysterious in their actions."
The Klansmen argued after the rally that they were ushered out of the area before they had their say.
"It is probable that the KKK may attempt actions to show their displeasure" through leafleting and graffiti, Sergeant Katz warned in his memo.
The weekend after the Oct. 29 rally, predominantly black neighbor hoods were littered with racist fliers challenging blacks to a night-time confrontation with KKK members. But no Klansmen appeared for the threatened rumble.
KKK Imperial Wizard Roger Kelly, who denied that he was involved in that incident, could not be reached for comment yesterday.
A few days before the incident at the synagogue, the outside of an Edgewater hair salon, which is owned by a black woman, was spray-painted with racial slurs. And last week, vandals placed a makeshift spear in the hands of a statue of Aris T. Allen, the late black politician.
Many Annapolis residents said they were starting to forget the Klan rally when the recent spate of hate crimes sprung up. Now they are sad, confused and angry.
"We would like to know who did this," said Mrs. Rosenblatt, whose late husband was a rabbi at the synagogue for 40 years. "Who is the person who carries so much hate in their hearts?"
Ms. Rosenblatt lives across the street from the temple and did not see or hear anything unusual Saturday night. But by Sunday morning, all she could focus on were the police cars pulling into the parking lot of the city's only Orthodox temple.
Ms. Rosenblatt and other victims of hate crimes wonder if they should play down the incidents so as not to attract copycat crimes. Others say it's more important to bring the prejudice to light.
In Edgewater, Cora Stewart said she's in no hurry to remove the racist graffiti spray painted on the steps behind The Difference Hair Salon, the store she has run for the past five years.
"I didn't feel I had to hide it," said Ms. Stewart, 30. "I would prefer people knowing about it because there's still a lot of hatred. If I had taken it off, no one would have believed the type of hatred that exists."
Ms. Stewart said she believes the graffiti stems from an Oct. 1 incident when a few Klan members held a rally about a half-block from her salon. During that rally, about 15 Klan members handed out literature under the watchful guard of a dozen county police officers.
The situation in Annapolis may not illustrate a larger trend. State police statistics show hate crimes in Maryland are down. The latest reports indicate 1,059 incidents in 1993, compared with 1,242 incidents in 1992.
But civil rights leaders say recent events in Annapolis might signal greater trouble ahead.
"Today they spray paint, tomorrow they spray a crowd of kids with gunfire," Mr. Snowden said.
He criticized the city government for not taking a more active role in preventing such crimes and for not speaking out against the incidents when they occur.
Local officials defended their efforts, and some argue that the Klan activity is a result of the government's work to present new opportunities for minorities in government and business.
"There may be a small fragment of people who resent where this city is going," said Vaughn Phillips, the city's equal employment opportunity coordinator. "There may be a small element who resent the strides the city has made."