De Blasio’s Tweet: Anti-Semitic? A Misspeak? Or What? (UPDATED Oct. 21/22)

UPDATED to include DeBlasio's statement Oct. 21.

See below.

On April 29, probably after being alerted by this tweet, and after shutting down a Satmar yeshiva a week earlier and a report that mikvaot will still operating despite a closure order on April 7, and a report on March 31 that some Jewish NYC funeral homes were overstacked with bodies, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted:

@NYCMayor
Something absolutely unacceptable happened in Williamsburg tonite: a large funeral gathering in the middle of this pandemic. When I heard, I went there myself to ensure the crowd was dispersed. And what I saw WILL NOT be tolerated so long as we are fighting the Coronavirus

Jewish funerals with hundreds and even thousands of Haredi particpants not practicing social-distancing or mask-wearing were all over the news (like that on April 2 of the Skulener Rebbe which also led to police being injured -

Photo: Todd Maisel

and another funeral here; and here; on April 5; and April 1; and one which led to contretemps and shouting at cops and an arrest). Not to mention this wedding or this one. 

In other words, these infractions of a dangerous nature (and defined as pikuach nefesh and those who practice such can be termed a rodef) were multiple, repeated, highlighted in the media including the Haredi press and web sites but with little, it would appear, or better, not enough, adequate enforcement either by the city institutions or by Jewish community leadership. In practice, the Aharon Teitelbaum Satmar Hassidic court on March 18 became strict 

but not, it would seem, in practice. They form the backdrop to what happened next.

A short while later, he tweeted out this

My message to the Jewish community, and all communities, is this simple: the time for warnings has passed. I have instructed the NYPD to proceed immediately to summons or even arrest those who gather in large groups. This is about stopping this disease and saving lives. Period.

While the first was liked some 6,600 times, the second, which explictly mentioned Jews, received some 34,100 likes (as of May 3).

His third tweet on the matter, again, that same day, after the uproar, was

We have lost so many these last two months + I understand the instinct to gather to mourn. But large gatherings will only lead to more deaths + more families in mourning. We will not allow this. I have instructed the NYPD to have one standard for this whole city: zero tolerance.

Did de Blasio purposefully employ Jewish community? Did he think there are several Jewish communities and the one closest to him, politically and financially, that is, the Hassidic/Haredi community, was the one that counts? Did he practice a double standard? Or what?

Was it an example of this perspective?

Select instances of noncompliance in Haredi communities, while certainly real, are given outsized attention in news media and internet discourse, creating a sensationalist public discourse that falsely suggests that Haredim, as a homogenous bloc, refuse to practice social distancing. The scapegoating of Haredim is increasing

For sure, there is some proof of anti-Jewish remarks stemming from that funeral. For example, Peter Bradley wrote:

If you watch the video, you will see a person barking orders. He is concerned that the people in the street aren’t wearing masks. In all likelihood, his concern is probably more based on the continuing negative publicity that this Hasidic funeral will generate from the media!

(I commented that that was: is a big guess, an assumption based on ??? Bias?)

This April 15 video was posted zeroing in on Williamsburg and Boro Park and it included a warning to stay at home and not attend synagogue services. On April 7 Naftuli Moser published his op-ed on Hassidic/Haredi behavior at weddings and funerals and linking that to connections with the political establishment, including the Satmar Rebbe`s March 16 prounouncement (with its problematic content):

 and after three Haredim were attacked as mosrim (here in another instance)

and an April 6 report on police crackdowns. Two days after the major Williamsburg incident, another crowd gathered for another funeral, this time in Boro Park.

Satmar came out and backed the Mayor:

We strongly denounce the vicious attacks against the Mayor, particularly those accusing him of anti-Semitism. The close relationship between Mr. De Blasio and our community go back close to two decades, during which time we have come to know, respect and appreciate his understanding and sensitivity to the unique needs of our community. We consider him a dear friend and pray for his success.

although that was attacked, some claiming it a reflection of Galut mentality. The clear message of the Novominsker Rebbe in early March, who later died of the disease, was ignored, even though there were community voices that decried the violations of the Corvid19 rules. As did a Rebbe.

One result, perhaps, is the appointment of a Frum Captain to serve as NYPD Jewish Community Liaison and another was the letter of Ted Cruz in which the Texas Senator wrote

it is especially dangerous to single out the Jewish community in a city that is experiencing a substantial rise in violent anti-Semitism.The Department of Justice should not hesitate to closely monitor New York City to ensure that the mayor’s rhetoric does not translate into constitutional violations

So, was De Blasio being anti-Semitic? With blood on his hands?

Or was this a one-off anti-Semitic incident? Can he really afford to be anti-Semitic? Did he scapegoat the Jews (even though he tweeted “My message to the Jewish community, and all communities”)? Is the city’s past pitiful response to anti-Semitic violence indicative of an anti-Semitic City Hall? Was he displaying underintelligence? Was he insensitive to the special circumstances that had developed in the situation of high-profile Jews perceived as purposefully and negligently flouting restrictions that could possibly affect other Jews and non-Jews and that his words would encourage anti-Semitism? When he tweeted the “Jewish community”, was he blind to the Jewish community at large or other Jewish communities or did he think, as perhaps Satmar assisted him to so think, that they are the real Jews and he just followed through?

One aspect stemming from the Satmar letters is one faces a tough choice: if you believe Satmar, no anti-Semitism by de Blasio. If you do not believe them, are you perhaps anti-Semitic?

According to Jacob Kornbluh, de Blasio is claiming to have spoke unintentionally, that he:

reached out to a number of Jewish community leaders in the last few days to clarify his tweet. He added: “I regret that I used words in the wrong way — in terms of giving the wrong impression, but I don’t regret sounding the alarm.”

Was the attack on de Blasio an attempt to cover for what has been described as a gross failure of leadership by Jews from all types of communities?

We may never know.

I would suggest that rules and regulations be followed if only to follow the instruction in the Ethics of the Fathers 3:2:

"Pray for the welfare of the government, for without the fear of it, man would swallow his fellow alive." 

Or was his outburst a cover-up for his incompetence?

P.S.

Here is a new summary article.

There is this feeling I have seen:

De Blasio repeatedly failed to act on a surge of antisemitic attacks in NYC, and sought to dismiss them as the work of the right and the fault of Donald J. Trump.De Blasio announced he had mixed feelings about the Trump Executive Order on campus antisemitism, because protecting Jews from campus antisemitism allegedly infringes on free speech rights.De Blasio’s own subordinates attacked De Blasio’s repeated attempts to whitewash African American antisemitism on the grounds that ALL antisemitism is right-wing.

And a Christian pro-Israel spokesperson Laurie Cardoza-Moore of PJTN wrote to her followers that:

Threatening to arrest “the Jewish community” for violation of social distancing by a minority faction, cast a further shadow that validated Jew-hatred and a backlash of antisemitic violence and response in America’s largest city. This is unacceptable and the Mayor needs to step down from his office as he is “unfit to serve” as the leader of a city that is home to the one million-plus Jewish community he was set in place to serve. “Rounding up” the Jewish community for arrest in the public forum speaks of a time we must never allow to re-emerge.

And now I see this:

Rabbi Gershon Edelstein, one of the heads of the Ponovezh yeshiva in Bnei Brak, gave a Torah class in which he explained why he believes most of those infected with coronavirus in Israel were from the haredi community.
"We need to understand something - in Israel and around the world, there are haredim who died of this plague more than anyone else," Kikar Hashabbat quoted Rabbi Edelstein as saying. "The Chazon Ish (Rabbi Avraham Yeshaya Karelitz - ed.) said that when people sin, it's by accident. A haredi who sins is doing it on purpose. Judgement is harsher for haredim."

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UPDATE  May 11, 2020

In a letter to Makor Rishon, Shmuel Pappenheim, himself who was sick with Corona, indicates that major sections of the Haredi community do have ideological problems with authority, and view governmental instructions with disdain:

UPDATE

Kahal Tolaas Yaakov threatened with closure for ongoing violations.

Previously violent couple use the Mayor’s  words to justify their anti-Semitic hate attack on May 11.

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DeBlasio Update

“I look back now and understand there was just more dialogue that was needed,” de Blasio said during a press conference Tuesday. “I certainly got very frustrated at times when I saw large groups of people still out without masks but I think more dialogue would have been better so I certainly want to express my regret that I didn’t figure out how to do that better.”

“That one night in Williamsburg I let my frustration and concern get away with me and I should have been more careful in my language and I’ve expressed my apology for that before,” de Blasio said Tuesday. He added, “The No. 1 takeaway from the meeting is more dialogue. More communication is the way forward.”

Next day's Andrew Cuomo:

“No,” Cuomo simply said during an Albany press briefing when asked by a Post reporter whether he believes an apology is owed.

“I am sorry that they feel the disruption, I am sorry that they are disrupted, their religious ceremonies are disrupted, how many people they can have in a synagogue is disrupted, how many people they can have at a wedding is disrupted, the operation of their schools is disrupted. I am sorry for that,” said Cuomo.

The governor continued, “In the same way I’m sorry to the Catholic community and Muslim community and to all New Yorkers. I’m sorry that we are going through this. I’m sorry that people are dying. I’m sorry the state has to impose disruptions on your life. I’m sorry that we had to close your businesses which may mean you lose your business.”

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