By COLlive reporter
First the bris milah became a topic for debate in the New York City mayoral election and now it’s the mechitza that’s being thrust into the limelight.
The New York Daily News reported Thursday that Republican candidate Joe Lhota didn’t object when three women were asked to leave a Brooklyn synagogue during a campaign stop.
A Daily News reporter, a campaign aide and a NYPD security detail were accompanying Lhota when he stopped at the Shomer Shabbos synagogue in Borough Park.
“A synagogue official hurried over to the three women in the group… and asked them to leave while the men were allowed to stay,” the Daily News reported.
It wasn’t clear whether the women were asked to merely step outside the shul or merely the men’s section. Also not mentioned was whether or not there was davening or learning in the shul at the time.
A spokesman for the campaign of Democrat Bill de Blasio told the media: “We’ve never invited press to an event where women would not be allowed.”
The Daily News reported that Lhota emerged from the synagogue less than a minute after the women were asked to leave.
“They were having a service and he just popped in to see,” explained Lhota’s spokeswoman Jessica Proud.
Asked about the incident afterward, the Jewish-born yet Catholic raised Lhota defended the synagogue.
“Throughout the Orthodox world, the Orthodox Jewish world as well as the Orthodox Muslim world, there are certain places that women are not involved in,” he said. “I will not as mayor violate their First Amendment constitutional rights for their religious practices.”
The election is November 5.
Democrat or Republican according to Torah? Let’s see their differences. Democrat: 1. Social values (providing) 2. Personal corruption (immorality, choice) 3. Natural values (environment etc) 4. Spiritual corruption (atheism) 5. Intellectual values (science) Republican: 1. Social corruption (greed) 2. Personal values (morality) 3. Natural corruption (hunting, capital pun) 3. Spiritual values (Theism) 4. Intellectual corruption (xnty) In Torah terms: The republican option of starving the surface (the body?) while feeding the essence tainted corrupted nourishment, or the democrat option of feeding the surface while starving and corrupting the essence. As there is no preferable option to be last, the not… Read more »
The only reason why the PAC says to vote Democratic is because in this city they are most likely to win and then they can say ‘we voted for you, give us this, give us that’. The PAC doesn’t think about what is truly important. In general, this stance hasn’t really helped CH as a community
Rest assured my friends that a Jew in DeBlasio’s campaign is the one who made an issue out of this. Sadly, other than secular, liberal Jews, nobody really has an issue with respecting Judaism and its culture.
For the record, like with Obama, DeBlasio’s BIGGEST supporters by far are liberal secular jews.
Why not? Since living in Crown Heights since 1976, as a ‘bochor’ I was always told by our PAC (Community Council) to vote Democratic because they helped poor and sick individuals more than the Republicans. I also, unfortunately, voted for David Dinkins, YM”S. Crown Heights voted (Votes?) Democratic. I’m not saying I’m a lover of the Democratic party. I wanted to help the citizens of Crown Heights. True, Mr. Diblasio acted poorly, but what is Mr. Lhota’s record? I’m not saying Mr. Lhota’s record is blemished —just skeptical. Do you know? Today, if a politician or citizen is very honest… Read more »
De Blasio said if elected he will stop surveillance of Muslims, see http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2013/10/16/de-blasio-tells-muslims-hell-end-broad-nypd-spying-if-elected/ .
De Blasio campaign making a big issue that Llota out of RESPECT for the shul, asked the woman to leave stay outside.
…and thats why we will be not voting for de belasio
BS”D this man has got to win Diblasio is one who cannot think out of the box, there are no exceptions by him or understanding of how other people do things, you young people who do not recall how things were in NYC before Gulliani ( who saved the City and DeBlasia calls him the most divisive Mayor in NYC history ) find out and then you will run to vote for Lhota