A supposed story about the Lubavitcher Rebbe that was widely shared on social media in the last few days has been proven to be a hoax.
The story being shared involved a couple from Brooklyn who were said to have been pulled over by a Puerto Rican police officer for a minor traffic violation.
The officer was said to have related that his father was a taxi driver in Brooklyn for many years and had received a dollar and blessing from the Rebbe for a child and in gratitude, he named his son Menachem Mendel after the Rebbe.
The story was shared along with a passport photo of a man with the name Menachem Mandela Dukes.
The story was widely shared by many on social media, until it reached Dvorah Z, who contacted COLlive to say that she was the one who had taken the photo, and he was not named after the Lubavitcher Rebbe, but after Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin.
“I work in Roseville, CA. I saw this kid in my store and he asked me where I am from because of my accent. I told him I’m from Israel so he said that his name is Menachem…he wasn’t sure why, but his brother said he’s named after Menachem Begin,” she said. “I took the photo of the passport to share with my family,” she said.
Screenshots of what appears to be a conversation between a “Menachem Mazarati Dukes” and an anonymous individual also began making the rounds on social media, where he claimed he was the person in the passport photo, but the story about the “blessing from a Rabbi in Brooklyn” isn’t true.
“My parents named me Menachem Mandela and my twin Shaka Anwar…” the person wrote. “Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat signed a peace treaty in 1978 for peace in the Middle East winning them a nobel peace prize. Nelson Mandela and Shaka Zulu are Zulu names, thus binding us brothers,” he wrote.
Blogger and journalist Mordechai Lightstone told COLlive he contacted Mr. Dukes, and the story is completely false.
Lightstone related that Dukes had told him as well that he was named after Menachem Begin and Nelson Mandela.
“He is not a police officer, he works at a school here in the city,” he related.
Lightstone says there’s a lesson to be learned from all this, advising readers to remember, “just because you read it online, doesn’t make it true.”
What was more disturbing, he said, was that someone would go through the trouble to fabricate the story.
“It simply boggles my mind that someone, somewhere, simply sat on Facebook or WhatsApp and just made up a story,” he said. “There are so many wonderful TRUE stories about the Rebbe. Powerful, inspiring, factually based events, why do we have to make things up?”
if this story was made up and if the picture was photoshopped, then I feel sorry for someone who spent time on this. There are many mitzvos to do.
happened with my friends mother. Will send COLive the true version
The story quoted here by #15 happened with Mrs. Miriam Goldstein. I personally heard the story directly from her. She told me that she inadvertantly gave the cop a good card instead of her license, and on seeing the Rebbe’s picture went on to tell her that he was one of the police who’s car used to escort the Rebbe to the Ohel, He was an italian cop.
Have you ever heard of Gregor Mendel, the father of genetics? He wasn’t Jewish. Neither were L. Mendel Rivers and Mendel Davis, congressmen from South Carolina.
there is a true story about this… there have been many versions but i know the true original one bc it happened to my mother.
True story – nothing to do with the Rebbe- I got pulled over once and the officers last name was Mendel and he let me go without a ticket.
How do you know that the Dvorah Z version is a made up false fabrication that is not true. Maybe it is Mordechai Lightstone’s version that is a made up false fabrication that is not true. Would you believe both are true? Or perhaps neither are true. No Nothing? I think we need to call in the Shpy to do a full inveshtigation of the shituation and report back to the chief. This could be the work of….. the Yetzer Hora.
LOL 😉 Dovid
What’s made up is the connecting of this person and this passport with the original story, when it bears no resemblance to it. The original story is actually very well sourced. It’s a shame that people pay no attention to detail and run with wild guesses. If they had, they would have never started these rumors. Specifically, Rabbi Tuvia Bolton heard the original true story from R’ Leibel Groner. That was an Irish officer on the Rebbe’s detail. The kid was named Mendel. Apparently some people mixed up the story in a ridiculous way and started pointing to Mr. Dukes.… Read more »
Anwar Sadat and Yasser Arafat are two very different people. Arafat is the father of modern terrorism, Sadat is the father of Israeli-Egyptian peace. Arafat had his people blow themselves up to kill jews, Sadat ended the Yom-Kippur-War to limit casualties to his army. To mix the two up requires a special type of ignorance.
It’s like the story’s of the Baal Shemtov most of them could of happened
Thank you so much for sharing the real story!
Peace, Dvora z.
“It simply boggles my mind that someone, somewhere, simply sat on Facebook or WhatsApp and just made up a story,”
It does not boggle my mind, as this is very commonplace, and the source of much of the shtusim vehavolim that get repeated at farbrengens
its disturbing to find out it was a fake story, i read the story on social media. Why would someone go thru the lenght of fabricating a Rebbe story like this? we have enough BH real Rebbe stories. Just shows what loshon horo could potentially do
I am a nurse and I have a pt named mendy. His father used to work in a store in crown heights and named his son for the rebbe. No miracle story that I know of though.
The most incredible thing about this story is the incredible miracle and Hashgacha Pratis that without even realizing it, these people inadvertently named their son with the Rebbe’s name! Truly an awe inspiring story. HaShem works in mysterious ways.
Unfortunately whatever we read or what hear on col or other places is not neccerly true so let’s learn from this not to publicize whatever we read or hear from someone because it could cause lots of problems Chad vestal of. Good shabbos
Let’s spend more time on sharing Toras Rabeinu on the net to accomplish Umalah Haaretz Deah es Hashem
there is a real story about a non jewish guy who asked the rebbe to have a baby and named the baby after the rebbe. not that this guy is a police and walks around carrying his passport ‘just in case’.
There are many true stories 1) the police guy from the Ohel , asking the blessing and naming his son Menachem Mendel, is an old story that we can ask Rabbi Krisnki about its validity to confirm. because he was the Rebbe’s driver 2) then we have the story of the lady that was driving and she was pulled over by the police guy that after he noticed the Rebbe’s pic he forgave the ticket, a shlucha told the story happening to her. 3) Then we have this story that when hundred guys we asked today Menachem Mandela Dukes (… Read more »
How many stories have you heard that you the reader verified directly to the actual participant? I’m sure that are some that are actually 100% true. So all the fluffed up ones serve to magnify the few that actually happened. And of those that happened, how many are interesting, unusual, or impossible without a miracle. Then do the math.
My point is not to minimize the greatness of a person. Some people are great because of their actual and true intelligence, insight, leadership, empathy, etc. Those people are ill-served by anyone making up or passing on a made up story.
same logic can say that how do you know the dude you spoke to is not lying?
There is a story like this that occurred and someone connected it to this picture…falsely
The following story I heard at my Shabbos table from a woman of anash who lived in CH. Today she lives in LA She was a principal at a Jewish school in Queens. One morning in her rush to school, she jumped a light on Linden Blvd. A NYPD highway cop pulled her over. She was upset and as she said it “kind of in a dream world” and the cop (who looked irish or italian to her) asked for license and registration. Without realizing it, she handed him a picture of the Rebbe. He looked at it and said… Read more »
“just because you read it online, it isn’t true” – that’s a preposterous statement, not to mention self-contradictory.
Regarding your maamar hamusgar, one of the versions (posted by #4) turned out to be mostly accurate. As for the version in this article, I remember hearing this story years ago and it’s quite possible that it did happen to someone else and it was mistakenly assumed that this was the same person.
Well said. Especially end part. Bichlal it’s a shame, because the more hispeilus a story draws, the more the reverse effect it could have when found it turns out to be false. (obviously, in regards to non lubavitch circles. This story made it everywhere.) And as you said there are so many wonderful true stories . Including mofsim the Rebbe made with non Jews, if that is more exciting….
Derech agav Nobel prize was in 78, he was born in 90..! So his version is also slightly weird 🙂
I SAW DIFFERENT VERSIONS OF THIS STORY A WHILE AGO. ONE OF THEM WAS ABOUT AN AFRICAN MAN WHICH MAKES MORE SENSE, SINCE MANDELA IS AN AFRICAN NAME.
Please keep us posted if you reach him.
to #8: He was contacted (he was found on the internet through facebook) and did respond “My parents named me Menachem Mandela and my twin Shaka Anwar….Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat signed a peace treaty in 1978 for peace in the Middle East and winning for them a Nobel Peace Prize. Nelson Mandela and Shaka Zulu are Zulu names, thus binding us brothers He also said that not many others contacted him and when asked how did his passport get out his response was “some ladies in Sacramento California took the picture and seems like they sent it to some… Read more »
he was contacted. no response so far.
Why can’t someone contact this guy and find out the real story
From 2011 through 2015 Menachem Mandela Dukes worked with Chateau de Lascaux, Aflac, Sterling Heights Chrysler, JB Hunt Transport Services, Inc., Hard Rock International and NYC Department of Education. All this is easily verified with a simple Google search. Menachem (Mandela) Dukes is not a police officer and never was. The story is also about 10 years old (it was posted on chabad.org in 2008, having taken place with an Irishman. A few years earlier than that I heard that this took place with a black police officer). That would make him around 15 years old when this took place… Read more »
would be the name of someone who has parents that are breslev and lubavitsh
wow i got the chills reading this. the rebbes brochos impacted more than we could ever know…
כושי שמע את אחותי מדברת עברית, ניגש אליה ואמר לה “קוראים לי מנחם” ואז היא ביקשה ממנו את הדרכון ואמרה לו קוראים לך מנחם מנדל
בבולטימור…
הם היו זוג אחים והסבירו שההורים שלהם רצו לקרוא להם ע”ש אנשים ששינו את העולם….
Story that went around with this same picture two weeks ago
shows you how unreliable these “social media” stories are
it’s his name – it would be on his badge and his license
u got story lil off
amazing
Loved the story!!
למנחם בגין, קראו מנחם בלבד (בלי מענדל) מה שהופך את הגירסא שמובאת בכתבה כאן, למעוררת עוד יותר תמיהה