Wide consensus exists that voter registration is an important issue, especially in light of the upcoming 2016 presidential elections. Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) was therefore surprised to receive voter registration forms mailed to his office in various languages, except one—Yiddish. Yiddish is the primary language spoken by thousands of his constituents. Hikind is therefore urging the NYC Board of Elections (BOE) to translate voting materials, especially voter registration forms, into Yiddish.
“There are voter registrations forms in Bengali, why not Yiddish? Everyone talks about how important it is to register to vote. There are thousands of Yiddish-speakers in my district and New York State,” said Hikind. In a letter to NYC Board of Elections President Michael Michel, Hikind wrote, “Making voter registration forms available in Yiddish will encourage native speakers of the language to register to vote by making the process more comfortable, inviting, and user-friendly.”
In his letter, Hikind added, “I invite you to take a look at any newsstand near my office, where you will see dozens of Yiddish language newspapers, magazines, and other publications, attesting to the vibrancy and every day usage of the language. As another Election Day draws closer, ballots and other materials generated by the Board of Elections, as well as information on the website, will continue to be displayed only in Bengali,Chinese, Korean, and Spanish. The voter registration handbook was even translated into Russian. But there are no Yiddish voting materials. This is a shanda—a disgrace—and totally unacceptable.”
“We need to expand voter registration opportunities to the thousands of Kings County residents whose primary language is Yiddish, especially in communities in my district such as Borough Park and Midwood, as well as Crown Heights, Kensington, and Williamsburg,” Hikind concluded.
(YWN Desk – NYC)
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5 Responses
Why even use English anymore? It’s nice that Doc Hikind wants to accommodate recent arrivals from southern Poland shtetls, but a rudementary, secular 5th grade reading level in English isn’t really much to ask for. Once again, Dovey shows he will do anything to pander for votes.
I agree with reb pork. dov’s office phone lines should have a “drikn tsvey far Yiddish” option on them.
No support. Voter registration materials should not be translated into anything. If you want to vote in the US you should speak ENGLISH! I have great respect for those keeping the Yiddish language alive, but to vote in an English-speaking country, you have to speak English.
This is an insane recommendation. ALL of the Jewish voters in his district were either born in the US or have been here for decades. If they can’t read English, SHAME ON THEM!!! And, shame on the local Yeshivas for making its students handicapped by not teaching them the language of the country they reside in. Next, we’re going to make the Welfare, Medicaid, Section 8 forms in Yiddish. DOV–go to the local yeshivas and tell them to get their act together and help prepare their students for the real world.
If those items are printed in real Yiddish no one will understand them.
In BoroPark they speak what’s known as “Yinglish”. (Some call it Hebonics).