Amid pandemic, de Blasio privileging of protest over prayer lights a fire on Jewish social media
Mayor Bill de Blasio came under fire after a controversial tweet Tuesday night. Image by Getty
By Aiden Pink June 2, 2020
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Tuesday that he still supported quarantine measures that limited attendance at houses of worship to 10, even as he supported mass protests in the city against police brutality.
While appearing at a virtual press conference, de Blasio was asked by a reporter for the Jewish outlet Hamodia about what the reporter saw as an inconsistency between his support for the protests and his opposition to opening up synagogues or shops. “What about the retail store owner facing imminent financial ruin or the religious person who cannot appear in their house of worship?” the reporter asked, adding, “Do we have one set of rules for protesters and another for everyone else?”
De Blasio responded with umbrage, saying that anyone thinking there are two rules “is not trying very hard to see the reality.” He added that the anguish over shopkeepers’ economic instability or parishioners’ inability to gather together en masse was not in the same league as protesting prejudice.
“400 years of American racism, I’m sorry, that is not the same question as the understandably aggrieved store owner or the devout religious person who wants to go back to services,” he said.
The remarks were harshly criticized on social media.
What @NYCMayor?!?
You’re 100% wrong.Sure, protesters have the right under the first amendment to march against racism, which needs to be confronted head on in this country, but the same first amendment guarantees religious people the right to practice their faith. https://t.co/iBiJqkmrXu
— Simcha Eichenstein (@SEichenstein) June 2, 2020
This position from de Blasio is unconstitutional and illegal. You can’t as Mayor pick and choose which lawful gatherings can happen and which cannot based on your political or personal preferences. De Blasio needs to resign or otherwise be removed – immediately. https://t.co/dZF0faAcO9
— Boris Ryvkin (@BRyvkin) June 2, 2020
Literally insane since freedom of religion and freedom of association/assembly are wrapped up IN THE SAME CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Bill De Blasio is THE WORST POLITICIAN IN AMERICA BAR NONE. https://t.co/lmh3EDPT6k
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) June 2, 2020
Aiden Pink is the deputy news editor of the Forward. Contact him at pink@forward.com or follow him on Twitter @aidenpink
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
