Edited by: TJVNews.com
Seems as though NYC Mayor Bill DeBlasio has some powerful allies in the city’s Orthodox Jewish community. As of late, the Mayor has been under intense scrutiny for his lack of a concrete plan to stem the tide of growing anti-Semitism in the city.
On Friday, the Satmar Chassidic community that is based in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn took to Twitter, of all places, to let their feelings be known about criticism of DeBlasio by Senator Simcha Felder (D-Brooklyn). On January 7th, Felder released an open letter that called on DeBlasio to tender his resignation for his “dismal failure in responding to the crisis.”
“We love our Orthodox elected officials who work tirelessly for the betterment of their constituents and our communities but we disagree when they berate openly other elected officials like the @NYCMayor or others etc, our #Torah teaches us a higher standard that we need to adhere,” the Satmar Headquarters tweeted Friday.
The Satmar community have, over the years, established close alliances with DeBlasio. Those who are outside of the ultra-Orthodox community have critiqued the mayor for “caving in” and not cracking down on yeshivas that do not provide their students with a basic secular education.
The NY Post reported that the Twitter account that was used by the Satmars said the message was approved “by our leadership and the personal intervention of the Satmar Grand Rebbe Aron.”
The Grand Rebbe that the Satmar community was referring to is Rabbi Aaron Teitelbaum, shlita. According to a report in the Post, the Rebbe is currently vacationing in Palm Springs, California. He was unavailable for comment on the post.
An anonymous source close to the issue at hand told the Post that the Satmars’ warning “seems justified.”
“By doing this Felder is screwing up high level conversations between the Jewish community and the mayor’s office,” the source said.
For his part, Simcha Felder told The Post he that believes that the Grand Rebbe of the Satmar community is unaware of the post
“I don’t believe the rebbe is approving or reading Tweets,” Felder told the Post. “The feedback that I’ve gotten overwhelmingly has been very very positive. I think people are sick and tired of what’s going on,” he said.
In defense of how the mayor has handled the 26 percent uptick in hate crimes in 2019 is City Hall spokeswoman Olivia Lapeyrolerie. She told the Post that, “we are committed to working with the Jewish community to prevent any further acts of hatred.”
Two weeks ago, the mayor proposed the creation of new multi-ethnic interfaith Neighborhood Safety Coalitions, increased NYPD presence, and new Department of Education lesson plans and curriculum as part of the City’s commitment to the prevention of hate crimes and anti-Semitic attacks. In addition to an immediate increased NYPD presence, the new Neighborhood Safety Coalitions will have physical presences in the community with neighborhood safety walks and corner watches. They will also offer ongoing programming designed to promote tolerance and break down stereotypes.
“Fearing the next act of terror will not become the new normal for our Jewish neighbors. In New York City, diversity is our strength and we respect the traditions of all who call New York City home. Intolerance will never take hold here,” said Mayor de Blasio.
