Welcoming Brooklyn's DA Candidates

I recently met with both Ken Thompson and Abe George, two of the leading candidates for Brooklyn District Attorney, to discuss issues here in Brooklyn and specifically those facing my constituents. I am very impressed with both of these fine gentlemen.

I look forward to meeting with all of the DA candidates in the near future and having them on "The Dov Hikind Show."

Assemblyman Hikind and Brooklyn DA Candidate Ken Thompson

Assemblyman Hikind and Brooklyn DA Candidate Abe George

PAMELA GELLER and JEFFREY WIESENFELD on The Dov Hikind Show This Saturday Night

This Saturday evening on The Dov Hikind Show, our special guests will be PAMELA GELLER and JEFFREY WIESENFELD.

PAMELA GELLER is a respected blogger, author, political activist and commentator known for her honest criticism of Islamic extremists. She was scheduled to speak at The Great Neck Synagogue this Sunday but the synagogue was bullied and intimidated into canceling her so she will now speak at Chabad in Great Neck on Sunday morning at 10 am, and at Temple Beth El, in Edison, NJ on Sunday, at 7 pm.  I plan to attend the Great Neck event.

JEFFREY WIESENFELD was appointed by Governor Pataki in 1999 as a trustee of the Board of the City University of New York. He is a resident of Great Neck and has been active in our community for many years.

Our city college sponsors a hate group and then a synagogue is blocked from having a speaker address the dangers of Islamic Fundamentalists! Where does it go from here?

Pamela, Jeff and I will discuss politically correct censorship, “Political Islam,” and the dangers it poses to the U.S. and Israel.

Tune in to WMCA 570 AM 11:00 PM.

HIKIND APPLAUDS CHABAD & TEMPLE BETH EL FOR STEPPING UP AFTER GELLER CENSORING

NEWS FROM
ASSEMBLYMAN DOV HIKIND

April 11, 2013

Contact: Yehudah Meth                                                       For Immediate Release
718-853-9616 (office)
973-945-4903 (cell)

HIKIND APPLAUDS CHABAD & TEMPLE BETH EL FOR STEPPING UP AFTER GELLER CENSORING

“WHERE HAVE ALL THE LIBERALS GONE?”

Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) was delighted to see not one but two synagogues step up and invite Pamela Geller to speak this Sunday, after her well-publicized speaking engagement at the Great Neck Synagogue was cancelled.

“The liberals came out of the woodwork to defend Islamic extremists rights to speak at Brooklyn College and call for the destruction of Israel. But when author Pamela Geller was prevented from speaking at a private synagogue because of bullying and intimidation, the liberals were mum. Where have all the liberals gone?”

Ms. Geller will now be speaking at Chabad in Great Neck on Sunday morning at 10 am, and at Temple Beth El, in Edison, NJ on Sunday, at 7 pm. The Assemblyman plans to attend the Great Neck event.

HIKIND CALLS OUT LONG ISLAND ‘RELIGIOUS’ HYPOCRITES FOR BULLYING GELLER, GREAT NECK SYNAGOGUE

NEWS FROM
ASSEMBLYMAN DOV HIKIND

April 11, 2013

Contact: Yehudah Meth                                                       For Immediate Release
718-853-9616 (office)
973-945-4903 (cell)

HIKIND CALLS OUT LONG ISLAND ‘RELIGIOUS’ HYPOCRITES FOR BULLYING GELLER, GREAT NECK SYNAGOGUE

“THE TERRORISTS ARE WINNING”

Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) says a successful campaign by a prominent Nassau County official to intimidate the Great Neck Synagogue into cancelling outspoken Islam extremist critic Pamela Geller is the height of hypocrisy and a terrifying blow against freedom of speech.

Habeeb U. Ahmed, a member of the Nassau Commission on Human Rights, organized like-minded extremist apologists into bullying and threatening the synagogue until Geller’s scheduled April 14^th appearance was cancelled. Ahmed was joined by Tom Goodhue, the executive director of the Long Island Council of Churches, and Robert Nuxoll, of the Interfaith Alliance of Long Island and a member of The Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Shelter Rock, is equating Geller to a Nazi, according to a string of emails posted by Geller on her blog.

“I am disappointed that the Great Neck Synagogue would cave in to this pressure,” said Assemblyman Hikind. “We live in nation that guarantees freedom of speech. The synagogue wanted Pamela Geller to speak or they wouldn’t have invited her. By giving in to pressure or fear they have denied many people, including myself, the right to hear what Pamela Geller has to say on Islamic extremism.

“This is a prelude to something terrifying. On the one hand, you have Brooklyn College officially sponsoring a group calling for the destruction of the State of Israel—and getting away with it! On the other, you have a successful intimidation network frightening a synagogue into cancelling the appearance of a well-known speaker and published author who they invited to speak. We never asked Brooklyn College to cancel the BDS event—my fellow elected officials and I asked that the college remove its official sponsorship. But we see with Islamic extremists and those who support them have zero respect for free speech. And we’re letting them get away with it, which means the terrorists are winning.”

EQUATING JEWS, CATHOLICS & EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANS WITH TERRORISTS MUST BE A JOKE

NEWS FROM
ASSEMBLYMAN DOV HIKIND

April 8, 2013

Contact: Yehudah Meth                                                       For Immediate Release
718-853-9616 (office)
973-945-4903 (cell)

HIKIND SAYS EQUATING JEWS, CATHOLICS & EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANS WITH TERRORISTS MUST BE A JOKE

Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) is asking officials at the Department of Defense to look into a story that originated at the DailyMail.co, a UK-based media site, which claims that official U.S. Army Reserve training materials list Catholics, evangelical Christians and Orthodox Jews in a “religious extremism” category along with the KKK, Hamas and Al Qaeda.

“When this story was sent to me, I had to look at my calendar to make sure it wasn’t April Fool’s Day,” said Assemblyman Hikind. “This story is so ludicrous that it’s almost beyond belief. Is it possible that anyone would be so out of their minds in this day and age as to equate legitimate religions and peace-loving observant people with terrorist groups? This must be a joke.”

The original story is here:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2304739/Army-Reserve-training-material-lists-Catholics-evangelical-Christians-Jews-religious-extremism-category-KKK-Hamas-Al-Qaeda.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

The New Education-Transportation Law: The Result of Years of Teamwork

Senator Simcha Felder, Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein and Rabbi Shmuel Lefkowitz join Assemblyman Dov Hikind on his radio show to celebrate the new Education Transportation Law

For years, we have been laboring together to bring yeshivos and parents much needed relief from the burden of paying for after-school transportation. As reported here, and by many others, we've finally accomplished that in Albany. This was no small feat and it's of enormous benefit to our communities.

I was delighted to have my good friends and colleagues Senator Simcha Felder, Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein and Rabbi Shmuel Lefkowitz of the Agudah join me on The Dov Hikind Show Saturday evening to discuss the history and ramifications of this historical breakthrough.

Again, thanks to the tireless efforts of many of my fellow Assembly Members and members of the New York State Senate, our great state is now going to accept the responsibility for providing transportation after 4:00 pm for children attending private and parochial schools in grades kindergarten through six.. In addition, there is a new safety measure in place; the new law will also ensure that transportation services deliver children within 600 feet of their homes.

The new transportation amendment is a huge accomplishment in terms of education, safety and financial relief. I could never understand penalizing children, parents and schools/yeshivas because they wanted more education. That was the wrong message. For many years we worked to get equitable transportation for children with longer school days. This subsidized transportation, which first passed last year, is genuinely an historic breakthrough that will help our yeshivas, parents and our community. Last year we saw the first big step in the direction of being fair and equitable. Now, we take an even bigger step.

In addition to the work done by Simcha, Helene and Rabbi Lefkowitz, this education milestone would not have been possible without Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos. The bill also had the passionate support of many of my colleagues, including Assembly Members Steven Cymbrowitz, Phillip Goldfeder, Mike Simanowitz and David Weprin, as well as State Senator Marty Golden, to say nothing of the other leaders of Agudath Israel of America, Rabbi Shiya Ostreicher and Rabbi Shimon Ostreicher.

BOLIVIAN OFFICIAL ADMITS TO EXTORTING JACOB OSTREICHER

NEWS UPDATE FROM
ASSEMBLYMAN DOV HIKIND

April 5, 2013

Contact: Yehudah Meth                                                       For Immediate Release
718-853-9616 (office)
 

BOLIVIAN OFFICIAL ADMITS TO
EXTORTING JACOB OSTREICHER

“Not a day goes by without my staff and I being asked about the welfare of our brother Jacob Ostreicher, who has been detained in a Bolivian prison for no reason since June, 2011,” said Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn). “While we cannot always discuss updates on this very complex and peculiar case, today we are extremely grateful and encouraged that a former member of the Bolivian Ministry of Government has admitted in a Bolivian court to attempting to extort Jacob.”

Fernando Rivera, a former director of the Ministry of Government, currently legal jailed for extortion, said in a probation hearing that he would like to apologize to Ostreicher for what he has done, but that he was “only following orders.” Accused of crimes he didn’t commit, Ostreicher was jailed at the Palmasola Prison in Santa Cruz until recently being released to house arrest in Bolivia. He is still prohibited from returning to his family in Boro Park, New York.

Bolivian media reported that in late November 2012, an extortion network that operated from within the Ministry of Government in collusion with prosecutors had been dismantled. Bolivian media said the extortion network was uncovered in large part because of complaints from official U.S. representatives and the intervention of actor Sean Penn.

“I hope all of you who are concerned for Yanky—for Jacob Ostreicher—will continue praying for his complete freedom and immediate return to his family,” said Assemblyman Hikind. “My staff and I remain in constant touch with Yanky and his wife Miriam. We believe this latest development will be helpful in the international courts and with the United Nations Human Rights Commission.  We hope that this latest testimony from a former Bolivian official will convince the Bolivian government of Jacob’s complete  innocence and that we can welcome Jacob home soon.”

Dov Hikind leading the first rally at the Bolivian Mission to the UN to bring attention to Jacob Ostreicher's plight