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<\/a><\/p>\nCentral Synagogue on Lexington Avenue, April 11, 2020. (John Lamparski\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Tisch addressed the Reform synagogue in Midtown Manhattan during its Friday evening prayers a week after a man disrupted the service by shouting obscenities, punched a congregant in the face and spat on and headbutted a Black security guard while calling him a racial slur. Suspect Larry Montes, who was arrested at the scene, has been charged with hate crimes in federal and state court.<\/p>\n
Tisch said there were no serious injuries. She called the attack \u201ca message written in violence,\u201d intended to tell \u201ceveryone who shares the victim\u2019s identity that they do not belong, that they are vulnerable, and that they should be afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n
She also noted that roughly half of confirmed hate crimes in New York City have for years targeted Jews, who make up about 10% of the population.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a proud Jew and a lifelong member of this congregation, you have my word that I stand with you in these uncertain and precarious times,\u201d said Tisch, adding that her commitment at Central Synagogue was \u201cdeeply personal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tisch spoke after an interfaith group of seven Christian, Muslim and Jewish leaders gave remarks about solidarity between their communities.<\/p>\n
\u201cMight our presence here be a testament to the ties, the durable ties that bind each of us together,\u201d said Cardinal Timothy Dolan.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are here tonight to affirm that you do not walk through this city alone, but you are held in a covenant between our communities,\u201d added Rev. Adriene Thorne of The Riverside Church. \u201cWhat affects one of us touches all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Montes told NYPD officers after his arrest that he felt disrespected at the Central Synagogue service and described the incident as \u201ca racial thing\u201d and \u201call religious motivated,\u201d according to a federal criminal complaint. He also said that he identified as Jewish.<\/p>\n
His aunt, Myriam Montes, told The New York Post that he was \u201cmentally traumatized because of his desire to belong to that religion [Judaism].\u201d The New York Times reported that Montes had a history of mental health issues documented by the NYPD.<\/p>\n
A Facebook page that appears to belong to Montes is littered with posts about Israel and Judaism. They include an image of a map of Israel with the text, \u201cKeep Israel in your heart,\u201d a video of Rabbi Yosef Mizrachi discussing why evangelical Christians support Israel and a video comparing Mayor Zohran Mamdani with Iran\u2019s former supreme leader, Ruhollah Khomeini.<\/p>\n