In response to a crime wave plaguing the Baltimore Orthodox community, two local business leaders sent out a letter urging for the community to react politically by uniting behind a frum candidate running for City Council.
The letter was distributed because while other communities around the U.S., including Southfield, Michigan, and New York, have frum elected officials advocating for them. Baltimore’s frum Jews have seen an unprecedented wave of home break ins, car thefts, and physical assaults recently, and no one is working to protect us in City Hall. Community leaders plan to change that in the upcoming election.
A professional political analysis of the city council district was conducted months ago and it determined that if the frum community would come out to vote for a solid candidate, and support his campaign financially, an Orthodox Jew can win the election. Realizing that frum legislative representation is critical, community leaders recruited Yitzy Schleifer, a local askan and small business owner, to run, and he has mounted a strong campaign that has gained serious momentum.
The following is excerpted from the letter, which was mailed to frum homes in the community, following police confirmation that perpetrators are specifically targeting the Orthodox:
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In recent days, you may have been a victim the rash of dangerous break-ins that have intensified in our neighborhoods. You certainly have heard about the rash of robberies, and cannot help but be gravely concerned.
Unfortunately, this has been a mounting problem in recent years. We are astounded by the lack of action by our local Councilwoman Rikki Spector. There should be a sense of outrage over this criminal danger which is overwhelming our neighborhoods, an outrage which you most certainly share. Yet we have seen or heard little if anything from Ms. Spector. Our current representation in the halls of Baltimore’s City Hall is increasingly aloof and unacceptable.
Just last week, Governor Larry Hogan sent one of his top advisers to meet with the NWCP and Shomrim to learn about our efforts. But in Baltimore City, the out-of-control crime targeting our homes and families has simply not raised sufficient concern or reaction by our own councilwoman. On the other hand, Yitzy Schleifer has been tireless in his efforts to motivate city officials to address this unacceptable situation; Yitzy Schleifer, with his characteristic vigor and competence, has set in motion his vast network, in coordination with our excellent neighborhood watch groups and associations.
As if the monetary loss we suffer with every home robbery and car theft were not enough, we also fear for the safety of our own families. We are unsafe sleeping in our own beds at night and even walking from our cars to our homes once the sun has set – whether it is our daughters coming home from studying late at a friend’s home, our sons returning from Mishmar, our spouses doing late night shopping for Shabbos on Thursday, or husbands returning from a Maariv minyan.
All of our residents, whatever the nature of their own activities, are increasingly at risk, while this is costing us more than our peace of mind and personal safety. We pay the highest property taxes in the state of Maryland, almost double that of surrounding counties. We give hours of our time for local community safety efforts – driving for the NWCP or volunteering for Shomrim. And now, community members in certain shuls, under the advisement of Rabbonim, are funding private security patrols to protect themselves.
If you agree that enough is enough, that we have to have a voice in City Hall that will see to the implementation of legislation to protect us, and who will be an advocate for us with the local police and every arm of government tasked with protecting our homes and our families, now is the time to elect someone up to the task, and ready to hit the ground running at every level of action. That candidate is Yitzy Schleifer.
Yitzy Schleifer has been a volunteer with Shomrim almost since its inception, and has been cited and awarded for literally saving lives, and for aiding police and government efforts to prosecute criminals who have attacked our families. In recognition of his abilities and powerful competence, Yitzy was appointed to serve as a community liaison to the State’s Attorney’s office. The State’s Attorney turned to Yitzy Schleifer to help ensure that Baltimore families have a vigorous advocate on crime and safety. It is time for all of us to turn to Yitzy Schleifer to represent us in City Hall.
(Bruce Spector – YWN)
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6 Responses
I suppose people taking individual action to defend themselves is out of the question. Just thinking wishfully. There is a term for Jews unwilling or unable to defend themselves: Oven-Ready.
This is exactly what the left does – they conjure up a crisis, a horror as a reason to vote for someone. Scare the people into voting for you. We’ve always had crime, always will have crime in a city that is run by Democrats. Schleifer’s answer is to put a band-aid on the cancer – just elect a Frum and he will fix things, yeah, right. How about we elect some Republicans who will bring the crime down in Baltimore City by not bringing in illegals and muslims, all with no jobs, just laying around collecting goodies on the backs of hard working, taxpaying Republicans. Here’s a concept – how about if we fix the union run failing schools, by actually giving the money to the student’s education and expect higher standards from the city kids. And how about if we get some of the onerous taxes and regulations off of small businesses that would bring them back into the city and then – get this – we could create jobs for these young people and maybe there wouldn’t be so much crime. If you make a minimum wage some thing that small businesses can afford to hire teenages at, maybe the black teen jobless rate wouldn’t be at 25%. And how about if we get rid of the welfare incentives that give more money to a single parent household. Then we would bring the Fathers back to the homes and then between the parents and the churches, we could get kids to respect authority. These things will NEVER happen under a Democrat controlled city, because the Democrats want the people to need them to survive, not the individuals. And the Democrats are in bed with the unions and the unions want the money for themselves, not the students.
So here is my solution for all of the Frum community that will fall for this Schleifer nonsense, you go ahead and continue to fall for this pack of lies, and then you hold Schleifer responsible for the crime and the decline of the city. You hold his feet to the fire and make him fix the problems and when he says he “can’t fix all the problems” but he’ll keep trying – then STOP and remember what I say here: that the Democrats will never fix the problems that cause the crime, they’ll just keep asking you for money so that they can keep trying. Some Jews will never learn. They will just keep repeating history over and over again.
Baltimore resident: Your post smacks of an agenda. You miss the point.
Schleifer has been involved in many pro-active efforts to deal with these issues. He may not be able to solve all of them, but he is trying to positively impact the quality of life in the community. No effort, no gain. All you get is continued deterioration.
This is as opposed to a 40 year incumbent who has made no effort at all and doesn’t even live in the district. Knowing both people very well, I can attest that Schleifer is far more intelligent and energetic of the two and has proven he can get things done.
For 40 years Councilwomen Spector never lifted a finger to get the children n her district summer lunches, let alone her Kosher constituents. She told no one about it. Schlefer found out and had it in place within one month. He has also spearheaded crime prevention efforts while Spector is nowhere to be seen.
BarryLS1: Don’t you think Schleifer has an agenda? As a candidate he has an agenda. Not everyone has to agree with his agenda. Free lunches cost the taxpayer more money. Remember there is no such thing as a free lunch. People had to wait in line for a small piece of food. Wouldn’t they be better off paying less in taxes and eating at home without waiting in line?
rug: His agenda is the betterment of the community. I agree that those programs shouldn’t exist, but it does and there is no reason for Jews not to share in the benefits they are paying for.
The bottom line, lower taxes would be better, but that is not happening so fast. Also, many Jewish families are overwhelmed with tuition costs, transportation, books and supplies, etc. There is no help for them with those things, while they pay for everyone else to get a free ride. At the very least, they should benefit somehow and that program saved them some money.
Mr Schleifer has not proposed even one way that another Democrat could stop the crime wave in cities like Baltimore that have been controlled by Democrats for decades.
The Democrats have voted AGAINST minimum sentencing laws that would put armed criminals behind bars for at least five years- yes, five years was too much for the Democrats who put repeat offender criminals right back on the streets with long rap sheets to invade our homes day and night.
Democrats have been in charge of the failed Baltimore city schools that put millions in government officials pockets and left poor, uneducated kids on the streets to take up lives of crime. Waves of illegal aliens are further driving up crime rates and draining tax dollars from making any improvements to infrastructure and services.
Democrats in Baltimore have made Baltimore a sanctuary city for illegal aliens and Syrian migrants, who take jobs away from city unemployed African American young men, and who flood the schools and hospitals getting freebies from our tax dollars that no other immigrant group in history has ever received- Italian, Irish and Post WWII Jewish refugees did NOT receive Welfare or free Healthcare and did not burden taxpayers!
The “free lunch” summer program Schleifer promoted is a typical example of wasted tax dollar Democrat initiatives that saw hundreds of young kids bussed in to stand on long lines reminiscent of Soviet Union Bread Lines, for a measly 1 small slice of pizza and. Cup of peas. These types of programs cost taxpayers more than the cost of what is actually given- had the taxpayer had his taxes lowered, as Republicans want, he could have had enough money to buy huge lunches for a month! These “free lunch” programs only brainwash people that they should be giving their money to the government, where mass corruption and waste is overwhelming, instead of keeping more in our pockets. Schleifer should have been advocating school Vouchers for Parents to get money back from their taxes to use for educating their kids, and yellow bus service for Jewish kids, lower taxes, and minimum sentencing laws to keep criminals off our streets- but then he would have to run as a Republican because these are Republican Conservatives ideas that would actually change the status quo!
When a Republican, Hogan, was elected Governor of Maryland, it negated all antiquated arguments like Schleifers that we have to vote Democrat and join leadership with their failing policies.
Has no one noticed that all pro Palestinian groups are allied with The Democrat party? That Muslim Brotherhood members have been given dozens of positions in the White House and across the Federsl government? The New Democrat Socialist progressive Party is not the party of the 1920’s. The Jewish community must start to realize that our values and goals are much closer aligned with Conservative ideals and initiatives.