He says:
On Monday, October 11th, a small, pathetic, vile cult from Kansas -- known as the Westboro Baptist Church -- plans to protest outside several synagogues and yeshivas in Kensington, Brooklyn.
These are the same hateful goons who protested outside Congregation Beth Elohim in Park Slope last year, with offensive signs like "God hates Jews." They have disrupted the funerals of U.S. service-members killed in the line of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, absurdly claiming that God is killing U.S. soldiers because our country welcomes gays and lesbians.
Even though they hate much of what is wonderful about America, Westboro Baptist has learned how to take advantage of freedom of speech, winning funds through legal settlements and getting enormous press coverage of their hateful, anti-Semitic, homophobic statements.
In addition to condemning them, I hope we can use this as an opportunity to celebrate the diversity and tolerance that makes Brooklyn great.
I've had the opportunity on a few occasions to work with one of the groups they'll be protesting on Monday, Chabad of Kensington, under the leadership of Rabbi Levin. Last month, I helped distribute food there to needy Kensington families (Jewish and non-Jewish alike), and I plan to do the same later this month (they provide food to hundreds of families there each month). They have an outreach program to help seniors throughout the community. Over the summer, I was honored to join for their summer camp graduation, where the children and families gave moving testimonials about what a great experience it had been.
As a Jew, a Brooklynite, and an American, I'm proud of institutions like Beth Elohim and Chabad of Kensington. And I'm proud that our freedom, our diversity, our inclusion -- regardless of religion, race, and sexual orientation -- is far stronger than the puny, nasty, small-minded hate that Westboro seeks to spread.