Cindy Grosz: Anti-Semitism Cannot Be Tolerated By Long Island Leadership

Just a few weeks ago, Jews in the Five Towns were outraged by ads in a special election where one religious Jew attacked another.

Jews no longer feel safe wearing a yarmulke, walking to shul or going to a kosher restaurant. Anti-Semitic acts have risen and both parties can’t control it.

Issues - think about them:

• Would Jews be having this discussion if we changed the word synagogue to mosque?
• Would this woman or anyone else dare to talk that way about mosques?
• On the other hand, should there be a law capping all houses in a community to become tax-exempt religious buildings?
• And shouldn't both parties work on the safety issues that come up when single family homes become houses of worship?

And consider:

• Homeowners do fear the sale of a new home that might be given a communal function because streets and infrastructure can not withstand the increased traffic, school buses and wear and tear.
• There are a record number of traffic accidents and injuries because of that kind of added traffic where this did occur. That’s not anti-Semitic, it’s fact.
• Local villages and neighborhoods aren’t able to fulfill budget requirements when residential taxes are lost by the rise in the number of multiple tax-exempt dwellings. All residents, Jewish and non-Jewish lose out on fixing potholes, better libraries and recreational events.

All this has to be solved. We elect people to do just that.

Action Speaks Louder Than Words

Elected officials, instead of wasting time and money setting up press conferences, initiate legislation to deal with the demands of modernizing communities and do your job.

Republicans and Democrats can be united in common sense solutions and voters will come out in November for those who actually do something more than going on local television or calling a local rabbi.

The Woman In Question

Were the tone, wording and setting shocking, but the practical parts of the message important?

It is telling that this woman spoke without offering ideas about how to work together instead of trying to keep Orthodox Jews out. Had she not highlighted the “menorah” but said that perhaps we could discuss limiting all religious institutions and not singled out Jewish ones, she could have been accepted differently.

Was the menorah which she saw as threatening to her way of life on the front lawn just for Chanukah? Symbols like a menorah, an American flag or a Trump MAGA banner are personal choices for many homeowners, as are Black Lives Matter lawn signs. They aren’t causing budget issues or safety and traffic concerns. And as much as I don’t like Black Lives Matter or Nazi flags on personal property, we live in a free country and there is nothing I can do about it.

Is she really an anti-Semite? One of the elite, subtle type of anti-Semites whose diatribes would not be found on social media?

We shall see how everything is followed up.

And, who is defending her? And why?

If you consider this video anti-Semitic, and live in the area, call your elected officials from ALL parties and actually do something about it. If you are one of those officials, it's time to act, not talk.

And to my Jewish followers, do yourself a favor. Think about your words and actions carefully so people's claims, like those of the woman in the video, are totally baseless and those making them can be called out for what they are: Jew Haters.