New York: Dozens Protest Antisemitism After Jews Attacked

i24 News

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The ‘No Hate, No Fear’ march against antisemitism, in New York City, Jan. 5, 2019. Photo: Seth Harrison / The Journal News, Rockland / Westchester Journal News via Imagn Content Services, LLC.

Roughly 100 people gathered in New York City on Sunday to protest against antisemitism after two Jewish men were attacked last week.

Ilan Kaganovich and Blake Zavadsky, who was wearing an Israel Defense Forces sweatshirt, were assaulted in Brooklyn on December 26.

Zavadsky was punched and had coffee thrown on him, while the two 21-year-olds were asked why they were in the neighborhood.

One of the attackers “didn’t like it, told me I had five seconds to take [the sweater] off and then he called us dirty Jews and punched me in the face twice,” Zavadsky said, the Times of Israel (ToI) reported.

Following the incident, the two Jewish men reached out to New York City Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, who organized Sunday’s protest.

“This is what we ran from, this is why our families brought us to America, and this is exactly what we’re seeing happening in this country again,” said Vernikov.

The NYPD deemed the incident a hate crime and are working to identify the perpetrators.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul took to Twitter to condemn the attack, calling it “abhorrent and unacceptable.”

“Hatred should not be anywhere,” Zavadsky said, ToI reported.

“There should be no type of hatred in any type of religion, any culture, and we’re not going to stop fighting until this is all over.”

Protestors carried signs that read “End Jew Hatred” across the street from pro-Palestinian activists who held a counterprotest.

The NYPD recorded 144 confirmed attacks against Jews between January and October 2021, out of 416 total hate crimes in the city.

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