Barricades stretched for a quarter mile along Roemer Ave. in Teaneck, N.J., on both sides of the street.
A spotlight camera stood sentry at the intersection outside the Congregation Keter Torah off New Bridge Road.
Tensions have been high in various corners of the township, home to a large Jewish community, since Hamas terrorists brutally attacked Israel on Oct. 7.
They have been even higher in the days since rumors surfaced that the synagogue was hosting a gathering of real estate agents on Sunday who will be selling land in Israel that was stolen from the Palestinians.
But that’s not what’s happening.
Not exactly.
But the internet can be a dangerous place.
And so can the world.
What is happening at the “Great Israeli Real Estate Event,” according to Juda Englemayer, a spokesman for the congregation, is that real estate agents from Israel will be showing off their projects in Israel and the occupied West Bank.
“No one buys anything there,” said Englemayer, who described the six-hour session as informational. “There are no transactions taking place.”
Englemayer also distanced the synagogue from the event, saying that Keter Torah was merely renting space to organizers, as it has done in the past.
He said this year’s event, which has been condemned by the Council on American-Islamic Relations and other pro-Palestinian groups, is getting attention only because of the Israel-Gaza war.
Not to mention social media. News of the meeting went viral after local resident Rich Siegal blasted the town council for allowing it to take place.
“If we allow this sale to go through, we are enabling a local synagogue to violate both domestic anti-discrimination laws and international law,” Siegal said. “We’re not entitled to have a real estate event where we only invite Jews for properties that are only available to Jews where Arabs are being actively kicked out of their homes right now.”
A video of his remarks garnered more than 120,000 views on Instagram.
But Teaneck Town Manager Dean Kazinci said the town has no power over how a private organization like a synagogue conducts its business.
“It is a private event being hosted by a a private religious establishment,” Kazinci said in a statement.
“The Township of Teaneck is a large, diverse community, and we welcome the free exchange of ideas. We encourage all residents to be respectful of one another in a peaceful and orderly manner.”
In other words, the town and the synagogue are washing their hands of the whole event.
That’s not good enough for residents like Sam Bruschansky, who lives across the street from Keter Torah and is worried about protesters who will practically be on his front lawn.
Bruschansky considers himself an American Jew, and doesn’t feel like he and his neighbors should be targeted over what is happening in Israel.
“I just don’t like trouble on my doorstep,” Bruschansky said. ”You think I want protesters at my door with little kids in my house? We might have to hunker down Sunday and not go anywhere.”
The fallout over the event could end up being much ado about nothing. Much of the controversy can easily be attributed to misinformation.
But just because you’re paranoid, it doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you.
Ninety percent of the projects on display at the event are in Israel proper, Englemayer said. The rest are in West Bank territories, some of which remain in dispute.
At the very least, given the timing, Keter Torah could have skipped the event this year, and let the real estate agents book another venue. That would have kept the demonstrators away from Bruschansky’s doorstep.
Tensions are high, and optics are everything.
And just because there’s smoke, that doesn’t always mean there’s a fire. But sometimes, especially where matters involving Israel are concerned, the smoke is bad enough.
LEONARD GREENE: Tensions rise in N.J. Jewish community over land for sale in Israel
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11.03.2024
Barricades stretched for a quarter mile along Roemer Ave. in Teaneck, N.J., on both sides of the street.
A spotlight camera stood sentry at the intersection outside the Congregation Keter Torah off New Bridge Road.
Tensions have been high in various corners of the township, home to a large Jewish community, since Hamas terrorists brutally attacked Israel on Oct. 7.
They have been even higher in the days since rumors surfaced that the synagogue was hosting a gathering of real estate agents on Sunday who will be selling land in Israel that was stolen from the Palestinians.
But that’s not what’s happening.
Not exactly.
But the internet can be a dangerous place.
And so can the world.
What is happening at the “Great Israeli Real Estate Event,” according to Juda Englemayer, a spokesman for the congregation, is that real estate agents from Israel will be showing off their projects in Israel and the occupied West........
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