Richard Grayson: Monday Afternoon at Beth Elohim

Thanks to Richard Grayson who went to yesterday’s press conference at Congregation Beth Elohim. Brooklyn politicians and religious leaders came out to decry the anti-semitic flyers found on Sixth Avenue Park Slope last week. Grayson posted this report on his blog, DUMBO Books of Brooklyn and was gracious to send it my way:

We were one of the first people at the Temple House of the Reform synagogue and were greeted outside by Rachel Goodman of Councilmember Brad Lander’s office, which organized today’s press conference responding to the incidents.

Like Rabbi Andy Bachman and a couple of others, Rachel asked us, “Who are you with?” and too embarrassed to say, “Dumbo Books,” we just said we were some schlemiel alerted by the post on OTBKB. News12 Brooklyn cameras were there, and maybe other channels, along with real print reporters and probably more articulate bloggers.

Detective Adam Barish (in the camel overcoat) was there to represent the NYPD.

Both Councilmember Lander and Rabbi Bachman, good guys from way back, came over to say hi as we tried to make ourselves unobtrusive in a middle row, sitting there as the various speakers and others came in, although there weren’t many regular people in the audience. The big machers were waiting for Marty Markowitz, and just when Brad Lander said, “We’ll give Marty another minute,” the borough president entered the sanctuary.

Brad Lander spoke first and then introduced the other speakers. Lander said that all the elected officials and their representatives and religious leaders were there to stand up united against hatred, not only in this instance directed toward Jews: “There is no room for hate speech and intimidation against any group in our community…to show our united front against those who would try to divide us.”

Rabbi Andy Bachman welcomed everyone to Beth Elohim and spoke out against anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia and homophobia. He noted that the congregation was founded in 1861 during a war fought to end slavery of one oppressed group, and said the inscription over the entrance to the synagogue’s main sanctuary, built in 1909, said, “Mine house shall be a house of prayer for all people” (Isaiah 56:7).

Read more at Richard Grayson’s blog, DUMBO Books of Brooklyn.