HIKIND URGES NEW YORK CITY LAWMAKERS TO PROTECT FREE SPEECH AND VOTE AGAINST YEGER’S DISMISSAL FROM THE IMMIGRATION COMMITTEE

With an upcoming vote on Tuesday, April 9, the New York City Council will decide if Councilman Kalman Yeger should be removed from the Immigration Committee for saying “Palestine doesn’t exist.”

“In all my years of public service, I can’t recall an instance of an elected official being punished for stating a historical fact,” said former New York State Assemblyman Dov Hikind. “The issue here is two-fold: first, they shouldn’t be penalizing speech that is free of hatred or incitement like stating facts (regardless of how unpopular they may be); second, if one political party is going to do so, they are expected to act in a balanced manner and apply their standards equally across the spectrum. Therefore, with the vote on Yeger’s dismissal tomorrow, the Democrats in New York City have a choice: protect free speech and show consistency in application of your principles, or commit a double-sin of limiting free speech (of an elected official no less!) while becoming the party of hypocrisy, double-standards, fecklessness, and an all-proud embracer of the oldest hate-speech. The ball is in their court. I urge our lawmakers to choose wisely.”