NY public Chanukah events ‘no different’ this year
After the horrific Sydney attack on Sunday, New York City announced increased security at Jewish houses of worship and Chanukah events.
“We need to acknowledge and call it for what it is. This was just not a random act of violence that took place. It was antisemitic and targeted Jewish people,” Mayor Eric Adams said during a press briefing.
“Words have meaning. Words have impact, and words have power. Everyone needs to understand what words mean before they repeat them, before they shout them, before they defend them,” the mayor said. “That attack in Sydney is exactly what it means to ‘globalize intifada.’ We saw the actual application of the globalization of intifada in Sydney, because the attacker knew who he was targeting and he knew why.”
“Among the murdered victims of the attack,” he said, were a “rabbi who had ties to Crown Heights, as well as a Holocaust survivor. Let me say that again. A rabbi and a Holocaust survivor killed for being Jewish.”
The rabbi, Eli Schlanger, a Chabad emissary, left behind a wife and five children, including a two-month-old. Alex Kleytman, a Holocaust survivor, reportedly died while shielding his wife, Larisa Kleytman, from gunfire.
New York Police Department Commissioner Jessica Tisch told reporters that the public will see “an enhanced uniform presence, specialized patrols, heavy weapons teams, community affairs officers, counterterrorism resources and bomb squad deployments where appropriate.”
“As always, we will follow up on any tips, leads and intelligence, and we are marshalling all available resources to ensure the safety of New Yorkers,” she added.
Tisch, who has said she will retain her post in the administration of mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani (who also decried the Sydney attack but has repeatedly declined to denounce the phrase “globalize the intifada”) said she was “going to be blunt — this is not an isolated incident.”
“It is part of a wider assault on Jewish life, an environment in which hatred far exceeds rhetoric and erupts into horrifying acts of violence,” she said. “Jewish communities are being forced to confront a threat that is persistent, adaptive and is evidenced yet again today, global in scope. That’s why the NYPD is acutely focused on prevention. We calibrate our presence to meet the threat, no matter where it lurks or whom it targets.”
Tisch, who is Jewish, noted that part of the ritual of the holiday is pirsumei nisa, publicizing the Chanukah miracle.
“That is why candles are lit publicly in windows, in front yards, in open and visible spaces. It’s a declaration of faith, resilience and continuity. That is what the Jewish community in New York City does every year, and this year will be no different,” she said. “I want Jewish New Yorkers to know the NYPD will always be there to protect Jewish communities’ right to worship freely, to gather openly and to celebrate without fear.”
