Following an incident in which Sunset Park City Councilman Carlos Menchaca supported anti-Israel social media posts, Borough Park Assemblyman Dov Hikind said he met with Menchaca and declared him Kosher.
The brouhaha started last month when Linda Sarsour, the Bay Ridge Palestinian-American Executive Director of the Arab American Association of New York (AAANY), sent out a series of controversial tweets about events in Israel, including posting a photo on October 11 of a Palestinian boy holding rocks in front of Israeli forces, commenting, “The definition of courage. #Palestine.”
When Queens City Councilman Rory Lancman saw the Tweet he replied with a tweet of his own stating, “No, the definition of barbarism.” Sarsour responded, “The Zionist trolls are out to play. Bring it. You will never silence me.”
On his Facebook page and on his Twitter account, Menchaca, an openly-gay Mexican-American shared Sarsour’s statement defending her tweets and commented, “#IstandWithLINDA Estoy Contino, mi hermana!” which translates into “I’m with you, my sister!,” accompanied by the hashtags “#IstandWithLINDA.”
This prompted Hikind, to summon Menchaca to his house and explain how upset people were about his seeming support for Sarsour’s anti-Israel posts. The call on the carpet worked and Menchaca backtracked.
“I recently stood up in support of the Arab American Association of New York and its leader, Linda Sarsour. I was misunderstood. Let me be clear. I do not support rock-throwing or any act of violence or speech that incites hate of any people,” stated Menchaca in an email.
Hikind said there is no excuse for supporting this violence in Israel and it should be denounced by the entire civilized world, but did accept Menchaca’s apology and said all is forgiven.
“Councilman Menchaca is a friend of our community and I consider him a personal friend. After discussing this matter today and clearing the air, we want to put this controversy behind us,” said Hikind.
Sarsour, who is reportedly interested in running for term-limited Bay Ridge City Councilman Vincent Gentile’s seat in 2017, did not return phone calls.
However, Sarsour has several allies in city government including Mayor Bill de Blasio and Public Advocate Letitia James, who appears on the AAANY Facebook page in promoting the organization’s 14th Annual Gala tomorrow night.
