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Crown Heights Jews Under Siege, Community Leaders Demand Response


flashing light1.gifOnce again, an innocent person has been viciously assaulted in the heart of the Crown Height’s Jewish Community last night. As YWN had reported earlier, an innocent 16-year-old boy, doing an errand for his mother, was beaten unconscious by two black males. His wallet, bike, watch, and cell phone were taken from him as well.

YWN has just spoken to Mr. Berel Sugar from the Crown Heights Jewish Leadership Council, who says that “Jews in Crown Heights are being victimized purley because of their Jewishness, and their appearance”.

“According to NYPD statistics, there have been more bias attacks/crimes in the past few months in Crown Heights, then there has been in the past three years,” Sugar said. “This is totally unacceptable, and we are demanding that the city respond appropriately.”

Additionally, Mr. Sugar says that NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg has not done enough in protecting the Jewish people.

A large demonstration which was scheduled to take place in front of the 71st Pct on Friday afternoon has temporarily been postponed – pending an adequate response from the Mayors office and the NYPD.

YWN has learned that if the city does not take appropriate action, a massive protest at the local Pct will take place. “We are giving the city time to respond”, one community activist told YWN.

A tremendous amount of media coverage has been given to this latest attack, including reports by CBS2, NBC4, FOX5, ABC7, CW11, News 12 BK, NY1 and many others.

“Jews in Crown Heights have never felt this way since Poland in the 1930’s, and we are not going to sit around and watch, Sugar says.”

Additionally, YWN spoke with some local residents who say that everyone is in an uproar – and are plain and simply fed-up. “If this is not stopped really fast, there will be an earthquake-type response,” a local resident who wished to remain anonymous told YWN.

“We hope that DA Charles Hynes will show the same level of interest and compassion in this incident as he did when the victim was the son of an NYPD officer”, Sugar said.

[Click HERE to watch YWN video footage of the large press conference this past winter when a Yeshiva student was viciously assaulted. Attending that conference were dozens of state and city officials. Note the speech given by Mr. Berel Sugar at 3:18 into the video]

Although YWN is not in possession of all the recent bias attacks in Crown Heights, we have compiled a “partial” list of bias crimes and attacks which took place in Crown Heights in the three years:

May 13th 2008: Lubavitch School Bus pelted with stones – reported HERE on YWN.

May 1, 2008: Swastikas found in Crown Heights.

March 27, 2008: Swastikas found in Crown Heights – reported HERE on YWN. 

January 19, 2008: Yeshiva student viciously assaulted by gang of black males – reported HERE on YWN.

November 19, 2007: Woman assaulted on Crown Heights street – reported HERE on YWN.

October 17, 2007: Yeshiva student viciously assaulted by two male blacks – reported HERE on YWN.

October 10, 2007: Young couple Assaulted & mugged on Eastern Parkway.

August 22, 2007: Person assault on Crown Heights street – reported HERE on YWN.

May 16, 2007: Person assaulted on Kingston Avenue near Carroll Street.

March 21, 2007: Attempted mugging and assault on Lincoln Place.

March 3, 2007: Yeshiva student assaulted by gang of teens near 770.

February 25, 2007: Mezuzah burned on apartment doorway (bias crime) – reported HERE on YWN.

February 23, 2007: Yeshiva student attacked with glass bottle & robbed.

February 7, 2006: Two separate assaults in one day on streets of Crown Heights.

December 29, 2007: New York Avenue – attempted assault and mugging.

October 7, 2007: Man assaulted with metal pipe, and rocks thrown into Sukkah.

February 6, 2006: Firecrackers thrown at mother and child – in a clear bias attack.

November 16, 2007: Swastikas scrawled on Lubavitcher Yeshiva School bus.

October 6, 2006: Yeshiva student viciously assaulted on Yom Kippur night.

September 17, 2006: Two Yeshiva students viciously assaulted with baseball bats – reported HERE on YWN.

August 23, 2006: Utica Avenue & Eastern Parkway – Yeshiva student assaulted.

April 26, 2006: Yeshiva student assaulted on Kingston Ave near President Street.

March 12, 2006: Swastikas found in Crown Heights.

February 28, 2006: Man murdered on Crown Heights street – reported HERE on YWN.

August 2, 2005: Man assaulted & verbally assaulted with hateful slurs.

(Yosef Groner – YWN Crown Heights)



29 Responses

  1. I would venture to say that more then this being a “bias crime”, I think it’s a crime as a result of an “adele” person walking down the street becomes an easy target for these hoodlums.
    I would suspect that gentile grandmothers (black or not) are also subject to these attacks, though we just don’t hear about them.

    What needs to be done is, the police need to find the attackers and prosecute them to the furthest extent of the law. Then things’ll calm down a bit.

  2. I’m waiting for Al Sharpton to mobilize his people to march on City Hall and demand that the Jews of Crown Heights be protected. Oops, sorry it was just a dream.

  3. Joseph, i’m tempted to agree but many of the in political power are our fellow JEWS and they need to scream the loudest. This is not pre war Germany but The United States Of America 2008… this type of violence cannot,should not and will not be tolerated. What is going to happen when a bunch of Yidden catch a black in the act of attacking Jews and take vengence…then all hell will break out!! These street animals must be controlled…they attack their own as well as ours…ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!

  4. Though, I don’t wish any more attacks on any of our dear brothers and sisters of Am Yisroel, let us remember that it’s not press conferences, demonstrations and community leadership meetings that will stop these attacks! It is Teshuva, tefillah and Tzedaka and Ahavas Yisroel and stopping to act, dress and react like the goyim.

    WAKE UP YIDDEN. WE ARE STILL IN GOLUS UNFORTUNATELY. IT’S UP TO US TO BRING MOSHIACH TZIDKEINU BB”A.

  5. I hope that YWN will let us know if and when the Crown Heights community makes a protest. I for one would like to join, because today its Crown Heights and tommorow its …..

  6. From what I remember of living in Crown Heights as a child, it was even worse back then. We would be either attacked, harassed or in some cases beaten and robbed almost weekly. Nothing was done about it to my recollection back then, but I sure do hope that the outpouring of our disgust over this rash of crime against our Jewish people, and the secular media coverage, will finally generate something being done about it (if it weren’t for Yeshiva World News, I would not have ever heard about it). #1, sadly, I know if my heart of hearts you’re right. History has proven your very words.

  7. Recently the Lubavitch/Crown Heights community has become a nightmare neighborhood for all its Jewish residents. Fellow Yidden: It’s high time to reach out to our community and assist in whatever way you can in ending the crime epidemic, and the epidemic of indifference by the NYPD. The only time the perpatrators of violence (against the Crown Heights Jewish community) get arrested by the NYPD, is when they are first nabbed by the shomrim.

    We need to end this massive injustice and get as much legal talent as we could get from our fellow frum yidden to sue the city for REAL protection. Al Taamod al dam roiecha.

  8. Though I don’t know him personally, I really like the style Berel Sugar uses. He doesn’t act like a politician running from photo op to photo op. He screams like a lunatic DEMANDING that the elected officials take notice of our plight. This type of lunacy is what brings results SHEAHECHTism (and I mean the other frauds in the “community Council too) only makes nice photo ops for his portfolio. Crown heights should clone sugar ten times, and the problem would be long gone.

  9. There is clearly a necessity to try and seek help via political channels. however we all know that these options even if they do help which they haven’t as of yet. No surprise.
    A more real solution can and must be taken. There are styles of Karate and self defense that can be mastered to a significant degree in as short a time a 6 months to a year that would help tremendously in almost any situation! Even or maybe especially the girls should take these lessons. There are even several experts that are in our communities that can teach these extremely effective techniques. Why do we have to threaten the Police stations of mass protest as our way of feeling we are doing something. Lets DO SOMTHING REAL!!
    No I am not advocating fighting. Someone well trained can often avoid a fight with these techniques, besides that someone who is confident is by nature less likely to be attacked!
    May we never need to come onto any such measures, and we should see the Geula Sheleima bekarov!!!

  10. Protests and diplomatic conferences will only get so far as to the next attack. Someone has to step up and retaliate, violently, and the message will be forcefully understood.

  11. there will be another more official march and rally on Sunday, I urge all non Crown Heighters to attend and show their support for their Jewish brothers. our blood is literally being spilled on our streets!

  12. i just came back from the protest dont worry if you could’nt make it hopefully there will be another one we went around the whole ch the cops had batons in there hands and brought down a hostage negotiating team about 1200 people came

  13. #7,
    While the first half of your reply is true, the second half is rubbish.. I see no halacha saying “ushmartem meod l’nafshoseichem” is no longer applicable in galus.

    Did you know that Rav Yosef Cairo was not zoche to die al kidush hashem? He begged hashem!

    #16 are you saying that jews in CH are to blame ?

    #14 Yael,
    yes we do.. problem is, shmirah in my opinion are led by the wrong guys, shomrim are led by those that kiss up to the cops.

    Sorry gents, in florida attempted assault is legal grounds for drawing your weapon.. failure to back down by the prep is legal grounds to open fire.

    Remember, you voted bloomberg #1 gun control nutcase.. He will not protect you! Every court case has ruled the cops do not have the responsibility to protect individuals.

  14. BSD

    Please don’t post your opinions about internal politics here. I know both Berel Sugar and Shea Hecht and both do a lot for the community, each in his own way. The last thing we need is to show our own divisiveness when protesting against the neglect and bias of the 71st.

  15. Instead of you all commenting from your safe neighborhoods or ivory towers, why don’t you get over here & HELP US!! Start by patroling with Shmira. Donate $$ to Shmira to update equipment & have patrols in cars 24/7 (Shabbos a non Jew will drive). Join us in protests. Complain to DA Hynes about ant-Jewish bias. Write to the media.

    We in CH feel very isolated. We need support from everyone in WB, BP, Flatbush, Manhattan, 5 Towns. Remember…we may be first, but YOU ARE NEXT!!

  16. If there is no immediate results after todays demonstration there should be a giant march on City Hall. That might pressure the self ashamed Jewish Mayor.

  17. Itzik_s:

    I didn’t intend to mock Rabbi Hecht. I only intended to say that his talent isn’t expressed in this crisis of dealing with the NYPD. He is doing yemin mekareves of the NYPD. What we need now is SMOHL DOICHEH! OUTRAGE is now needed, not pacifism. We’ll reserve hakaros hatov for the NYPD when they earn it. As of now the only thing they earned is outrage towards their practices, and that they will get in large measures now.

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