An estimated 50 protestors, some dressed in ultra-Orthodox Jewish attire, held a rally outside the home of Bronx, Jewish Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (A.D. 81), in the Riverdale section of the Bronx on Sunday, Dec. 12, displaying anti-Semitic imagery and protesting the assemblyman’s sponsoring of bill A8378, according to one witness who works for the assemblyman. It is the second such rally protesting the assemblyman’s legislation in the last month.

The bill, if passed, and which is still at the committee level stage of the legislative process, would authorize the State commissioner of health to develop and supervise the execution of an immunization program against COVID-19 for schools funded with State aid, and would require immunization against COVID-19 for those attending such schools.

While @JeffreyDinowitz sponsor bill #A8378, putting our lives in danger for his anti freedom anti population agenda, pro-freedom pro-life protesters showed up at his home with the truth#COVID19Vaccine#VaccineMandates#NoVaccineMandates#SaveOurKids https://t.co/QkI5FRnSjh pic.twitter.com/3C6coaIFwe

— Voice of Jews (@VOJews) December 12, 2021

Norwood News reached out to the Astorino campaign following the incident at Dinowitz’s office last month and asked if he equated a COVID-19 vaccine mandate to the murder of millions of Jewish people during the Holocaust. Phil Oliva, spokesperson for Rob Astorino’s campaign, replied, “Rob never saw the sign (which displayed a swastika), and would have removed it had he spotted it. While he strongly opposes COVID vaccine mandates and passports, it doesn’t compare to the atrocities committed by Nazi Germany. Rob believes we can disagree with people without calling them Nazis.”

While healthcare workers are putting their lives on the line to save NYers, a couple dozen antivaxxers showed up at my home to spread misinfo and pseudoscience about vaccines.

And, they brought their Holocaust imagery to co-opt. Again. pic.twitter.com/RZdFGuKKvr

— Jeffrey Dinowitz (@JeffreyDinowitz) December 12, 2021

During the latest rally held outside the assemblyman’s home, it is unknown what percentage of the overall group may or may not have been Jewish. The witness counted approximately 4 to 5 Hasidic men among the crowd, and one man who was wearing a yarmulke (a skullcap worn in public by Orthodox Jewish men or during prayer by other Jewish men), who was filming the event.

 

One protestor, dressed in ultra-Orthodox Jewish attire, held a sign that read, “Please do not discriminate our God given gift of life and health. Let us stay safe by avoiding the COVID-19 genocide vaccine.” Another similarly dressed protestor held another sign that read, “Jeffrey Dinowitz, stop bill A8378. Don’t kill our kids.” Yet another protestor, also dressed in the same attire, held a sign that read, “Religious liberty in the USA under attack.” One member of the group also wore a yellow star on his clothing.

Other signs seen at the rally included swastika symbols. Other protestors, also dressed in similar ultra-Orthodox Jewish attire, covered their faces with similarly worded signs. Yet other protestors, who were dressed in regular attire, held a sign that read, “No Jab – No Entry? I did Nazi that coming.” At least one other protestor carried an American flag.

Some so-called, anti-vaxxers across the world have been bizarrely equating COVID-19 vaccine mandates to the treatment of Jewish people during the Holocaust over the course of the last year.

The Twitter account for the “Voice of Jews” later tweeted images of the rally with the message, “While @JeffreyDinowitz sponsor bill #A8378, putting our lives in danger for his anti freedom, anti population agenda, pro-freedom, pro-life protestors showed up at his home with the truth. #COVID19Vaccine #VaccineMandates #NoVaccineMandates #SaveOurKids”

In one video, posted to Twitter by the same group, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man at the rally delivers a speech and appears to blame undocumented immigrants for the spread of COVID-19, saying, in part, “I feel that this liberals is a punishment, this [inaudible] liberals is a punishment from God for causing and allowing any other things.” He added that Republicans should not cave in to “any minority from the liberals” and that God will bless people “to make America great again.” The tweeted video in question is attached further below.

Another photo captured a protestor holding a sign with the words, “Hey Dinowitz, [   ] You 2” along with a drawing of a hand displaying the middle finger gesture.

The assemblyman responded to the event, via Twitter, writing, “While healthcare workers are putting their lives on the line to save NYers, a couple dozen antivaxxers showed up at my home to spread misinfo and pseudoscience about vaccines.” He added, “And they brought their Holocaust imagery to co-opt. Again.”

Norwood News reached out for comment to a local Bronx rabbi at a local Bronx Jewish center to ask if he knew the Jewish protestors who attended the rally at Dinowitz’s home, and to ask if he had any comment on the rally. We will update this story upon receipt of any response we receive. We had also previously reached out to the same rabbi and to another local Jewish center, for comment, following the previous rally held outside the assemblyman’s constituency office in November. We did not receive an immediate response on that occasion from either center.

Orthodox Jews at the protest rally today outside the house of assemblyman Jeffrey dinowitz Jeffrey Dinowitz in the Bronx NY, who sponsored bill A8378 in the NYS Assembly, requires COVID19 vaccination for attendance at school pic.twitter.com/FNNEUmceZm

— Jewish Desk (@JewishDesk) December 12, 2021

When contacted, police said no hate crime had been reported following the November rally in Kingsbridge. However, as reported previously, hate crimes in New York City were up 95.5 percent since 2020 according to NYPD data as of Nov. 21, with 497* hate crimes recorded citywide as of that date Of those incidents, the NYPD told the Norwood News that 180* are classified as anti-Semitic.

In the Bronx, year-to-date hate crimes were up 126.3 percent, compared to 2020, as of Nov. 21, with 43 such crimes reported as of Nov. 21, while in the 28 days ending on Nov. 21, hate crimes were up 300 percent in the borough. In the 50th precinct, which covers Riverdale, Fieldston, Kingsbridge, Marble Hill, and Spuyten Duyvil, a broad area that is home to a substantial Jewish population, hate crimes were up 800 percent, as of Nov. 21, compared to last year.

As also reported by Norwood News, a Spuyten Duyvil man was arrested and charged with hate crimes in October 2021 for vandalizing various synagogues in the Northwest Bronx in April of this year.

On Sunday, amid the ongoing rise in COVID-19 cases across the State, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced that masks will be required in all indoor public places unless businesses or venues implement a vaccine requirement. Officials said this was a major action to address the winter surge as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations rise statewide and to align with the CDC’s recommendations for communities with substantial and high transmission. The State health commissioner issued a determination solidifying the requirement.

According to State officials, the determination was based on the State’s weekly, seven-day, case rate, as well as increasing hospitalizations. The new business and venue requirements extend to both patrons and staff. The measure is effective Dec. 13, 2021, until Jan. 15, 2022, after which the State will re-evaluate based on current conditions. Officials said the new measure brings added layers of mitigation during the holidays when more time is spent indoors shopping, gathering, and visiting holiday-themed destinations.

Hochul said, as governor, her two top priorities were to protect the health of New Yorkers and to protect the health of the economy. “The temporary measures I am taking today will help accomplish this through the holiday season,” she said. “We shouldn’t have reached the point where we are confronted with a winter surge, especially with the vaccine at our disposal, and I share many New Yorkers’ frustration that we are not past this pandemic yet.”

The governor added that she wanted to thank the more than 80 percent of adult New Yorkers who she said have done the right thing by getting fully vaccinated. “If others will follow suit, these measures will no longer be necessary,” she said. “I have warned for weeks that additional steps could be necessary, and now we are at that point based upon three metrics: increasing cases, reduced hospital capacity, and insufficient vaccination rates in certain areas.”

Since Thanksgiving, the statewide seven-day average case rate has increased by 43 percent, according to State officials, and hospitalizations have increased by 29 percent. While the percentage of fully vaccinated New Yorkers continues to increase, gaining 2 percent from Thanksgiving weekend to Dec. 12, officials said the uptick is not fast enough to completely curb the spread of the virus, particularly among communities with low vaccination coverage. In New York City, as of Dec. 10, cases, hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 were all increasing.

State Department of Health officials said the department has produced nation-leading studies, published in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) and the New England Journal of Medicine, which demonstrate the COVID-19 vaccines’ effectiveness – particularly in preventing severe disease. Department officials continue to urge eligible New Yorkers of all ages to get fully vaccinated and boosted as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, on Monday, Dec. 13, the Van Cortlandt Jewish Center announced that it will be holding a “Celebration of Appreciation, Honoring Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz,” on Sunday, Dec. 19, at 10.30 a.m.

Representatives of the center said, via a press release, “Jeffrey Dinowitz was elected to the New York State Assembly to represent the 81st Assembly District in the Bronx on February 15, 1994, and he’s been our Assemblyman since. The district includes the Van Cortlandt Jewish Center (VCJC) in Van Cortlandt Village.”

They added, “When the NYC Department of Education abruptly stopped renting space from VCJC, Assemblyman Dinowitz stepped in and helped broker a deal with Mosholu-Montefiore Community Center (MMCC). That was key to VCJC’s ability to continue to serve both the Jewish and general communities of Van Cortlandt Village, as it has for over 90 years. VCJC now houses the JASA Senior Center and the Mosholu-Montefiore Early Learning Center.”

The group concluded, saying that they would be pleased to show their appreciation for all the work the assemblyman has done for VCJC and for the community. Stu Harris, president of VCJC, said, “I am happy that we’re finally able to honor Assemblyman Dinowitz after the year we’ve had due to COVID. He is a man that deserves to be honored, and I’m sorry we had to put it off last year.”

Orthodox Jews protest today outside the house of assemblyman Jeffrey dinowitz @JeffreyDinowitz in the Bronx NY, who sponsored bill #A8378 in the NYS Assembly, requires #COVID19 #vaccination for attendance at school #VaccineMandates#NoVaccineMandatespic.twitter.com/dEcDDg6JoC

— Jewish Desk (@JewishDesk) December 13, 2021

Editor’s Note: Get the facts regarding the COVID-19 vaccine here.

To report a hate crime in progress or any emergency, call 911. Non-emergencies should be reported to the local precinct.

*According to the NYPD, the hate crime task force statistics referenced above are subject to change as active possible bias cases can be reclassified to non-bias cases, and removed from counted statistics, upon investigation. As a result of a possible bias to non-bias classification, statistical percentages may fluctuate beyond assumed percentage calculations from week-to-week reporting periods.

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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.