Mayor Adams Participates in Jewish Community Events Sunday

By Reuvain Borchardt

BROOKLYN — New York City Mayor Eric Adams participated in three events with the Orthodox Jewish community on Sunday.

In the morning, he spoke at the COJO of Flatbush annual legislative breakfast at the Kol Yaakov Hall, where he was given the organization’s Distinguished Public Leadership Award.

“This community, as well as many other communities, you believe in the things that I believe in,” said the mayor. “You believe in faith, you believe in family, you believe in business, you believe in education, and most importantly, you believe in public safety. You support your Police Department.”

“You have witnessed the resiliency of this city, and that the cornerstone of that resiliency are the diversities we have in communities like this community, and so many others,” the mayor continued. “This is a community where you will not have to take off your yarmulke to walk the streets because of hate.”

Adams has built deep ties to the Orthodox Jewish community since his years representing Crown Heights as a state senator and then as Brooklyn Borough president. He was elected mayor in 2021 with strong support from the community, and he has appointed Orthodox Jews as senior advisor, deputy chief, and commissioner of his Community Affairs Unit.

This year’s COJO breakfast, in addition to the usual speeches from politicians, featured speeches by relatives and friends of hostages of Hamas in Gaza — including those who have been killed, who have been freed in exchange for Israel releasing terrorists from prison, and who are still in captivity.

Adams, a staunch supporter of Israel who has visited that country, said, “I have been consistent in my comments: No one likes to see children die [in Gaza], but Hamas must be destroyed and the hostages must be returned home. And we can end this violence by taking the necessary steps to do so.”

In the afternoon, Adams participated in Chasdei Lev’s annual pre-Pesach distribution for rebbeim and teachers at Floyd Bennett Field-Gateway National Recreation Area — not far from where Adamsset up tents in late 2023 to help house some of the more than 100,000 illegal immigrants and asylum seekers who have come to New York over the past year.

Josh Mehlman, one of the leaders of Chasdei Lev, told Hamodia that despite the difficulties in holding the event so close to the migrant housing, “we were determined to make it happen at Floyd Bennett Field — because the choices were either here or shutting down Coney Island Avenue for a week. And Baruch Hashem, the mayor was able to come through, cutting red tape and working with the federal government, and we were able to hold our event as usual.”

More than 100 tractor-trailers of food and paper goods were distributed to rebbeim and teachers. Each family receives over $3,000 worth of merchandise, with the rebbe/teacher paying one-third of the cost, the school paying one-third, and Chasdei Lev donating one-third.

Brooklyn has the biggest Chasdei Lev distribution, which totals more than 430 yeshivas and day schools across the country.

At night, Adams attended Bobov’s celebration of the establishment of new school boys’ and girls’ school buildings in Boro Park, held at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

In his introductory remarks, Bobov community leader Joel Rosenfeld said the new school buildings will serve to educate “thousands of respectful, peaceful and law-abiding citizens who will go out to raise beautiful families of their own. These young minds engage in rigorous learning Sunday through Friday from before dawn until after dusk — a pursuit of educational excellence that should be the envy of all and emulated throughout the city for the positive results it continues to produce year after year, and child after child.”

Rosenfeld’s comments about yeshiva education were a reference to a long-running battle between yeshivas and the state Education Department over the secular curriculum in yeshivas. Adams, who has who has praised yeshivas, on Sunday night once again spoke in support of the Orthodox community’s educational system and achievements.

“My commitment to you is to create an environment where you will have the right not just to train your young people, but to educate your young people … in the cultural understanding of this important community,” Adams said. “Education is more than knowing about Shakespeare: It’s knowing about your scholars. It’s knowing about your culture. It’s knowing about your religion. It’s knowing about your faith. And you are doing something right — because I do not see in your community people committing robberies, homicide, selling drugs, doing things that are wrong. So there’s something right about what you are doing.”

Amid rising hate crimes in New York, particularly following Hamas’ October 7th attacks in Israel, Adams reiterated his commitment that “you will never have to remove your yarmulke or be afraid to go in your synagogue or be afraid to enjoy your community because hatred is pervasive. Not in my city, not while I’m the mayor.”

Rosenfeld called Adams “a dear and loyal friend of the Jewish community. And this friendship and your leadership have never been more important to us [than] in these very challenging times.”

The Bobov community raised $150 million for the construction of the the two new school buildings. Located on 37th Street at 14th Avenue for the boys and 51st Street at 14th Avenue for the girls, the buildings span a combined nearly 350,000 square feet with over 140 classrooms.

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rborchardt@hamodia.com

Photos below: Adams at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, at Bobov’s celebration of the opening of a new school building.

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rborchardt@hamodia.com