Numerous elected officials for New York State and New York City, including many from Queens, were present for the Queens Jewish Community Council’s (QJCC) annual legislative breakfast on Sunday, Feb. 8, at the Young Israel of Jamaica Estates, located at 83-10 188th St. in Jamaica Estates.
The event provided a great opportunity for Jewish leadership in Queens to network and discuss important issues with the elected officials in attendance.
Among those on hand for the legislative breakfast were New York State Attorney General Letitia James, New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin, New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, New York City Comptroller Mark Levine, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz, New York State Reps. Grace Meng and Tom Suozzi, former New York State Rep. and current QJCC President Barry Grodenchik, QJCC Executive Director Mayer Waxman and many others.
Many of the elected officials addressed the attendees of QJCC’s legislative breakfast.
“We will work with each and every one of you,” James said. “We will make sure that people are fed. We will protect homes, protect the Jewish community and stand with the Jewish community now and forever.”
“It’s amazing at how many elected officials, community leaders, people come here in order to celebrate the Queens Jewish Community Council, but also to stand in support of us,” Katz said.
“If you take a look at the lines that go to the QJCC food pantries, they’re taking care of so many people across Queens and across the city, and that is one of the best ways to build bridges in this diverse community,” Meng said. “We want our Jewish community and every faith community to celebrate their faith proudly and openly. In America, no one should live in fear of practicing their religion. That’s why public safety is a top priority of mine in Congress.”
“The Jewish community is in a place in this city that those of us in this room have never known. We need armed guards in our synagogues, in our schools. Regrettably, it is necessary to have police patrols as well. Incidents of antisemitism have soared in our borough, in our city, despite the efforts of our NYPD and our outstanding District Attorney, Melinda Katz. If you are counting antisemitic hate crimes in January, they were nearly triple what they were in January of 2025. This is not the New York City I grew up in,” Grodenchik said. “Our message to our elected officials, who are outstanding friends, to the Jewish community and to the media that is here today and not here, is that we are not going anywhere. We will not yield one inch to hate, and we are certainly not going to abandon communities that we have all worked to build up, in some cases for decades.”
