Queens Jewish Link
Connecting the Queens Jewish Community Tish’ah B’Av, observed on the ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av, is a solemn day in Judaism, marked by mourning and fasting to commemorate the destruction of the First and Second Temples. The Temples held immense significance in Jewish history as centers of worship and Divine presence.
Last week, US Reps. Grace Meng (D-NY), Kathy Manning (D-NC), Chris Smith (R-NJ), Susan Wild (D-PA), María Elvira Salazar (R-FL), David Kustoff (R-TN), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), and Don Bacon (R-NE) announced an historic $2.5 million for the Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism, an increase of $1 million over the amount it received last year.
Council Member Vickie Paladino had the honor of visiting the newly-minted Chazaq Youth Center in Forest Hills and spoke with the organization's leaders, including Rabbi Yaniv Meirov, CEO; Israel Peskowitz, Government Affairs; Community activists Tim Rosen and Alan Sherman; as well as the center's educators about how we can engage our youth. "The center was absolutely gorgeous and the girls there described their experience as 'amazing' and the people as 'family,'" said Paladino of the experience, adding, "It was so beautiful to see a community coming together to support their youth and engage them in creative ways. I look forward to my next visit to the Chazaq Youth Center and a further partnership with the organization."
In the face of ongoing criticism for slandering Israel as a “racist” state, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) said that “most of us that get called out are women, Black, brown, immigrant. Rabbi Yoel Schonfeld, President of the Coalition for Jewish Values, made the following statement:
As Israeli society grapples with deep-seated divisions, a beacon of unity emerged this week on July 18, Bottom of Form the eve of Rosh Chodesh Av, when a lively crowd of thousands of teens from across the country gathered at Binyanei Hauma to take part in an energy charged Unity Conference, billed “Aderaba.”
