A sickening display of anti-Semitism was showcased at a public hearing in the town of Haverstraw, NY (near Monsey) last night, when a bigot got up and made incredibly shocking and hateful comments about the Jews of the town.
The incident came during at a town hearing during which a variance was being considered for a property upon which Jews are planning to build a shul.
During the public comments section, a man who self-identified as Nick Collela of 45 River Glen Drive, got up to give his two cents about the Jews.
Collela went on a tirade against the proposed building of the shul, looking for every possible complaint he could use – from garbage cans in the street to Hatzolah showing up to emergencies – to somehow get the shul’s request for approval denied.
Then came Collela’s most sickening comment.
“There is a certain sect of people that tend to walk in the street, and nobody is wearing any reflective gear,” the anti-Semite said. “So, if I run one of them over – and of course I’m gonna back over them again…”
The bigot was then ordered to back off the microphone by the shocked officials, but the man kept going on his anti-Semitic rant. He finally left the podium after a police officer approached him and ordered him away.
As the officials tried to regroup and get the hearing back in order, a woman noticed a Jewish man videoing the proceedings. She then “danced” towards the camera in a clearly mocking way, and then unleashed a threat on the Jewish man, who was well within his legal right to video the hearing.
“Video me and I’ll have you arrested,” she said. “You have to give me permission to video me. You have permission?”
A woman who had in the meantime walked up to the podium complained about the man videoing the proceedings, and after the officials explained that he was allowed to, she said, “of course, they’re allowed to do whatever they want.”
The Haverstraw Police Department has been notified of the incident, with YWN told that they plan on paying a visit to Mr. Collela.
NY Governor Kathy Hochul has also weighed in on the incident in a tweet.
I have heard reports of violent rhetoric towards our Jewish community at a town meeting in Rockland County. Antisemitism, like all forms of hate, is horrifying and unacceptable.
Everyone has the right to walk down the street without fear. New York, we are better than this.
— Governor Kathy Hochul (@GovKathyHochul) November 11, 2021
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
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31 Responses
It’s a very old tasteless joke, based on the observation that accidentally running someone over is “cheaper” than injuring them.
I’m thrilled that the author of this article has never experienced actual antisemitism.
Sounds like your average day in the Monsey and surrounding areas.
Has anything really changed?
I do wish people would wear reflective material at night, though.
“So, if I run one of them over – and of course I’m gonna back over them again…” This is a clear threat and a clear bias crime. However, the law is not going to stop Mr. Colella’s genocidal cravings unless someone files an actual police complaint. Without an official police complaint the police will not do anything more than tell the bigot to be careful in his future public expression, and he will still posses his driving license and possible firearms, free to act upon his threat. Every visibly religious Jew that was present at the meeting, please file an official police complaint with the local police, another complaint with the NY AG, and another federal complaint with the Department of Justice. Every person should file their own set of complaints. Each complaint should state exactly what happened, which was a bias crime intimidation; don’t agree to any report other than a bias crime. If you were at the meeting, please dedicate an hour of your time, and save lives by making sure that Mr. Colella will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law and will have taken away his driver license and his firearms.
Sorry but if you can’t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen. If you continue to antagonize these people, yes, antagonize, I said it, this is the way they will talk. I live here a very long time, almost 50 years, and we are destroying this neighborhood. These people were here longer and we are taking over the place. He probably sees what we are doing to Monsey and doesn’t want it to happen to Haverstraw. You have to be crazy to try and drive around the town of Ramapo at any time of day. Place is a zoo! Growing up, I never heard a horn. No one beeped unless it was an emergency. These days its Brooklyn with horns at every hour, even early in the morning. Say what you want about me but I don’t blame him.
The deranged man moved from Bensonhurst in 2014 to a hamlet Thiells NY.
Forshayer:
I imagined Mike Levin screaming “I said it” when youwrote those words…
Here’s an idea.
Let the Rabbonim teach their kehillos about nizkay shechainim, basic decency, and kiddush Hashem. Standing up and telling yidden to please look around and think about your neighbors shouldn’t always be met with a the charge of ‘dee ante semit vos du bist’.
This is how every petition of this sort begins….. the haters come out of the woodwork and self identify… What is surprising is that there were so few of them
Forshayer, the problem is not “talking”, but a bias crime intimidation, which is a state and a federal crime.
As far as “destroying the neighborhood”, our community does not bring in narcotics and violent crime to the neighborhood, and the neighborhood home values only go up when the religious Jews move in. Any issue of overbuilding in Monsey and Lakewood was done by a few individuals on the zoning boards and by a few greedy developers, and the community is not responsible for these individuals. Keep in mind, that the white old-timers made a conscious decision not to procreate, and to have 1.5 children and a dog. As a result their population is dropping down and consequently new ethnic groups are purchasing homes that the white old-timers sell upon going into nursing homes or passing away. Therefore, given a choice between drug addicts newly arrived from the south border and a religious Jewish family moving next door to you, who would you choose if you were a rational person?! Please stop justifying this irrational hatred of Jews.
What we think of the blacks, they think of the jews. Its a sad reality that all ultra orthodox neighborhoods are noisy, messy, people are rude, impatient and obnoxious. Traffic everywhere, school bus drivers honking and driving like maniacs. Do you blame these people for hating jews?
@acc 5 replies so far and one of them is yours and is complaining about what I said. First of all most people who are here for awhile, came here for the piece and quiet we once had. I still long for that piece and quiet and the fact that my house is worth $100k more doesn’t give me any satisfaction. I’d rather my house stay under a million and not get woken up by these people beeping at 5 in the morning! I also appreciate that we procreate at a higher rate than yenim, but Ramapo can’t handle everyone of them living here. We don’t have the infrastructure or the resources to handle it. And i’ll take a dog any day over these newcomers.
I understand why these people are upset. They never wanted to live in a Jewish neighborhood and now they will either have to or leave. Just because you dont want to live in a Jewish neighborhood doesnt make you an anti-Semite. I get it.
It just so happens to be that many of these folks at this meeting are raging anti Semites and its coming out now. At the end of the day, there is nothing they can really do about it. They dont own Haverstraw any more than the newcomers do and they have no right to stand in the way of its change. This is life. Neighborhoods change whether you like it or not.
Also, (thank god) I have never been to Haverstraw but wiki says that 34% of the population is Dominican. Why is it that everyone at this KKK reunion is old and white?
To git meshige
I don’t know where you live. Where I live the people of color about 98% of them are good people, many of them have jobs. They are not demonstrating, they are not looting, they are simply trying to survive like the rest of us. One bad apple does not represent an entire community or neighborhood.
To the posters that say it’s because the way we behave
We don’t steal
We don’t make loud noises during the night
We don’t do drugs
A lot of non Jews honk their horn, don’t use their turn signal
The reason obviously is עשו שנאי ליעקב
Forshayer, move to Haverstraw.
And I would like to see Attorney General Garland instruct the FBI to monitor these town meetings and arrest these domestic terrorists.
@Forshayer, I lived here for close to 60 yrs, and the hate comes out everytime we move into a new area, I remember the hate Rabbi Rottenberg ztl [fil of the present rebbe] had to endure when he open the first shul in Forshay.
PS most of those North Rockland bigots are NYC transplants
I live in this neighborhood, in fact about 3 blocks away from this individual. If anyone thinks this neighborhood is noisy/messy/overly congested with garbage strewn about, or that the people moving into this neighborhood brought this on themselves, is sorely mistaken. It is a quiet, pristine and beautiful neighborhood with stunning views of the mountains and Hudson River. Jews and Non-Jews here take pride in their properties and most everyone is friendly and neighborly towards each other. The problem here is this disgusting anti-Semitic Jew hating individual, not the Jews.
Git Meshige and Forshayer, I do blame them for hating Jews. The alleged Jewish shortcomings in no way justify that degree of animosity. Plus, many of the shortcomings you mentioned are not really shortcomings. Noisy? Traffic everywhere? Come on!
Who was the fat white trash Karen that did the dance for the camera? Can you post her name and address just like you did for Mr. Collela? Everything should be on public record.
what we think of the – they thing of the jews. but no one wants to live next to criminals i have apparent it is very hard to rent out apartments where those are living thats affact also the jails are full from them the main problem with the jews is they are united and the goyim are jealous
how is git meshige racist accusations against the jewish community still up. orthodox jews love all people regardless of gender, race, color, or religion.
I love how some self hating Jews above blame j Jews for the antisemitism, and actually defend the righteousness of the antisemite!
To me he sounds totally frustrated that you guys aren’t protecting yourselves! he wants you to wear relectors so that he DOESNT run you over! This isn’t anti semitism, sorry! Take the Mussar and do something about it!
The commentary is ignorant. But I do agree with the people here who do point out that we Yidden should be more mindful of being good neighbors. In all ways. Don’t wall down the street like you own it. Take your garbage cans in on time. Etc
It’s just simple decency. Sadly in my neighborhood Yidden began parking the wrong way on the street. It’s a poor example to set. We need to park like everyone else and not act like we own the city. Yes probably they will still continue to hate us, but we have to do our part.
Git Meshige! What an appropriate name.
Git Meshige just described every town in the sunbelt from North Carolina to Arizona and down to Florida and especially Texas. But, in those rude, traffic filled cities, it’s not as easy to find Jews.
If Jews are to blame, then they are an amazing economic catalyst.
All those Jews who are saying bad things about our brothers will have to answer for it in the Olam HaEmes.
To Forhayer
You are in a unique situation because of your specific loacation….Let me ask you, were you one of the first people to encourage the place that impacts you. If so kindly tone down the complaints…. Outdoor minyanim also create an atmosphere that post covid many people do not understand yet you are a proponent of them. Lets support our fellow jews and work with them rather then attack them.
You are lucky enough to live in a “gated” community LOL
Forshayer, if you don’t like it, move. And when we spread to wherever you go, move again. I understand you want a certain lifestyle, but the onus is on you to keep on looking for it. You do not have the right, ever, to prevent a place from changing in order to preserve your preferred lifestyle.