Dov Hikind
Dov Hikind | |
---|---|
File:Hikind.jpg Dov Hikind | |
Member of the New York State Assembly from the 48th district | |
In office January 1983 – December 2018 | |
Preceded by | Samuel Hirsch |
Succeeded by | Simcha Eichenstein |
Personal details | |
Born | Brooklyn, New York City | June 30, 1950
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse | Shoshana Hikind |
Children | Deena, Yoni, Shmuel |
Residence(s) | Brooklyn, New York City |
Occupation | Assemblyman |
Dov Hikind (born June 30, 1950) is an American politician in the state of New York. He is a Democratic New York State Assemblyman representing Brooklyn's Assembly district 48, having held this position for 35 years, from January 1983 until December 2018.[1]
In addition to being a state Assemblyman, Hikind hosts a weekly radio show in New York City.
Background and family
Hikind grew up in a Jewish family in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, his father being a devout follower of the Vizhnitz Hasidic dynasty.[2]
Hikind is married and has three children: Yoni, Shmuel, and Deena. Yoni and Shmuel both work as social workers in the Jewish community in Brooklyn.
Politics
Hikind endorsed Michael Bloomberg the first two times he ran for mayor of New York City, then switched his endorsement to the challenger Bill Thompson in the 2009 election.[3] Hikind had broken ranks with his party before, most notably in his endorsement of Republican candidates George Pataki for governor in 1994, George W. Bush, John McCain, and Mitt Romney for president.
Described by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency and The New York Times as a conservative Democrat,[4][5] Hikind believes that the national party has moved too far to the left, particularly on social issues, for the liking of many of his constituents.[5]
Hikind expressed interest in the special election for the New York's 9th congressional district seat vacated by Anthony Weiner; Hikind did not expect the Democrats to nominate him and considered running as a Republican.[6]
In 2017, Hikind's son Yoni ran for the City Council in district 44 against Kalman Yeger, David Greenfield’s handpicked successor who was on the Democratic party line; in order to avoid a primary, the younger Hikind collected petitions to run on his own party line called “Our Neighborhood.”[7]
In 2018, Hikind announced his upcoming retirement from the New York State Assembly, proclaiming support for his handpicked successor Simcha Eichenstein.[8]
Views on issues
Profiling
Hikind has advocated for the profiling of Muslims of Middle Eastern and South Asian background as a response to terrorism.[9] In 2005 he sponsored a bill to allow police to focus on Middle-Eastern men in subway bag searches.[10][11] At a news conference, holding up photos of Muslim men, he said, "The individuals involved [in terrorism] basically look like this. Why must police think twice before examining people of a particular group?"[12] He has described this as "terrorist profiling".[13] Civil rights groups opposed Hikind's proposal, and the New York City Police Department released a statement against it, saying that "Racial profiling is illegal, of doubtful effectiveness, and against department policy".[14]
Following the attempted bombing of Northwest Airlines Flight 253 in December 2009, Hikind introduced a similar bill that would allow law enforcement agencies to consider race and ethnicity as "one of many factors" in selecting persons for anti-terrorism stops and searches.[10]
Subway security
Hikind was instrumental in arranging for the allocation of $1.2 million in a project that helped to install 120 closed-circuit television security cameras in nine South Brooklyn subway stations that are located in Jewish neighborhoods such as Borough Park, Midwood, Kensington, and Parkville. He stated that the project was prompted by "concerns that the Jewish community would be targeted" by terrorists.[15] Hikind encouraged politicians to do the same in other subway stations, which now lag behind those of his community. A New York Times article revealed that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority had granted close to $600 million in funds for security to stations in New York City in late 2002; however, only a small fraction of it had been used productively by 2005.[16]
The Passion of the Christ
In 2003, Hikind and a group of supporters protested Mel Gibson's film The Passion of the Christ. He led about 50 Jewish leaders and supporters to the Fox News offices in Manhattan in a demonstration, chanting "The Passion is a lethal weapon against Jews."[17] Hikind was vocal in his anger against the movie, stating: "It will result in anti-Semitism and bigotry. It really takes us back to the Dark Ages ... the Inquisition, the Crusades, all for the so-called sin of the Crucifixion of Jesus."'[18]
Yassir Arafat
In 2001, Hikind argued that the Madame Tussauds New York wax museum should remove its wax statue of the Palestinian leader Yassir Arafat, claiming that he was a terrorist whose image should not be in New York.[19]
Zionism
As the son of Holocaust survivors, Hikind considers his parents' experience to be an important component of his Zionist views. Among his early activities were demonstrations demanding the right to emigrate for Soviet and Syrian Jews. In the summer of 2005, Hikind visited the settlements of Gush Katif to express his concern for the residents who were slated to be expelled from the Gaza Strip. In the summer of 2006, along with a group of fellow legislators and community leaders, Hikind visited northern Israeli communities during the time of the Hezbollah rocket attacks on Israel. He and his group spent the time there distributing funds and material aid.[citation needed]
United Nations
Hikind is part of a group of New York state legislators that has consistently attempted to block plans to renovate the headquarters of the United Nations, calling the UN anti-American and anti-Israel.[20]
Hikind criticized President Barack Obama for abstaining on UN Security Council Resolution 2234, which criticized Israeli settlement activity in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, calling the UN a "cesspool".[21]
Same-sex marriage
After voting against a same-sex marriage bill in the New York State Assembly, Hikind claimed that same-sex marriage can lead to the acceptance of incest, maintaining that, "If we authorize gay marriage in the state of New York, those who want to live and love incestuously will be five steps closer to achieving their goals as well."[22] On June 15, 2011, after the New York State Assembly passed a bill to legalize gay marriage, Hikind said gay marriage is wrong in the eyes of God.[23]
David Irving letter
On October 20, 2009, at the insistence of Hikind and twelve other New York State and City officeholders in a letter to American Express CEO Kenneth Chenault, the company rescinded its Merchants Agreement with prominent Holocaust denier David Irving.[24]
References
- ^ Kim, CeFaan (25 April 2018). "Longtime lawmaker Dov Hikind not running for re-election". ABC7 New York. Disney.
- ^ Ami Magazine (100): 57. December 26, 2012.
{{cite journal}}
: Missing or empty|title=
(help) - ^ McIntire, Mike. "Mayor's Campaign Follows Jewish Voters to the Catskills". New York Times, August 1, 2005; p. B4
- ^ "One of New York's most outspoken Orthodox politicians is retiring". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. April 25, 2018.
- ^ a b Neuman, William (November 10, 2016). "In Democratic Stronghold of New York City, Trump Finds Support Among Orthodox Jews". The New York Times.
- ^ Benjamin, Elizabeth (2011-06-20). Extras Archived March 29, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. State of Politics. Retrieved 2011-06-20.
- ^ Jorgensen, Jillian (December 3, 2017). "Assemblyman Dov Hikind's son, Yoni, jumps in race for City Councilman David Greenfield's seat". New York Daily News.
- ^ Donn, Yochonon (April 26, 2018) "Simcha Eichenstein Declares Candidacy for Brooklyn Assembly Seat", Hamodia. "Speaking at Hamodia’s office, [Eichenstein], the 34-year-old veteran of the de Blasio administration said in an interview that he will run in the Democratic primary this September to replace Mr. Hikind, a longtime lawmaker who announced this week that he will no longer run. Mr. Hikind is supporting Mr. Eichenstein’s candidacy and intends to campaign with him.
- ^ Vielkind, Jimmy (December 29, 2009). "Hikind Renews Call for Terror Suspect Profiling". Observer. New York.
- ^ a b Omi, Michael; Winant, Howard (2012). "Conclusion". In HoSang, Daniel; et al. (eds.). Racial Formation in the Twenty-First Century. University of California Press. p. 314. ISBN 978-0-52-027343-6.
{{cite book}}
: Explicit use of et al. in:|editor2-last=
(help) - ^ Epstein, Edward (August 10, 2005). "Calls for racial, ethnic profiling renewed after transit attacks / Critics say it unfairly singles out minorities". San Francisco Chronicle.
- ^ Getlin, Josh (August 14, 2005). "Complaints on NYC subway searches grow". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 26 February 2013.
- ^ Kaufmann, Mareile (2010). Ethnic Profiling and Counter-terrorism: Examples of European Practice and Possible Repercussions. LIT Verlag Münster. p. 44. ISBN 978-3-64-310447-2.
- ^ "Pol: Use Racial Profiling on Subways". Fox News. October 6, 2005.
- ^ Chan, Sewell. "Metro Briefing New York: Brooklyn: Security Cameras In Stations." New York Times. Jun 2, 2005 . pg. B.8
- ^ Chan, Sewell; Fahim, Kareem. "M.T.A. Slow to Spend Money on Transit Security" New York Times. Jul 9, 2005. pg. A.1
- ^ Trotta, Liz. "Jewish leaders condemn film: Call Gibson's movie on Christ's crucifixion anti-Semitic.", Washington Times; p. A14 (August 29, 2003)
- ^ "Fox passes on Gibson's The Passion". Los Angeles Times. 2004-10-22. Retrieved 2008-08-30.
- ^ Haberman, Clyde. "Offense Taken To Extremes On Our Behalf." New York Times (May 19, 2001), p. B1
- ^ "UN Takes A Beating", The Jewish Week, December 17, 2004
- ^ "Assemblyman Hikind: Obama is a hero to the terrorists". Arutz Sheva. December 30, 2016. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
- ^ Paybarah, Azi (2007-06-22). "Hikind Responds: Why Not Incest?". The New York Observer. Archived from the original on 2008-10-11. Retrieved 2008-11-22.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ "NY Assembly passes gay marriage as expected". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Associated Press. 2011-06-15. [dead link]
- ^ Siemaszko, Corky. "American Express says Holocaust denier David Irving's no 'merchant', thanks to Assemblyman Hikind". Archived October 24, 2009, at the Wayback Machine New York Daily News. October 21, 2009; retrieved 2009-11-24.
External links
- 1950 births
- Living people
- 20th-century American politicians
- 21st-century American politicians
- American Orthodox Jews
- American Zionists
- Children of Holocaust survivors
- Jewish American politicians
- Members of the New York State Assembly
- New York (state) Democrats
- People from Brooklyn
- People from New York City
- Queens College, City University of New York alumni