Frustration filled a standing-room-only town hall in Cambria Heights Monday night after residents said they were blocked from entering their neighborhood and forced to show identification to access their homes.
“I think people are just tired. People are fed up, aggravated,” resident Olivian Mans-Nelson said.
Residents weren’t questioning why thousands of people came to visit a religious event called the Ohel the last four days. They wanted to know why the security plan they expected wasn’t the one they got.
What You Need To Know
Thousands of people from around the world come to Cambria Heights for a religious pilgrimage
Community leaders say the crowds that come have always been disruptive, and they’ve worked with city agencies to prepare
Residents were questioning why the security plan differed from what they say they were expecting
“You asking me, ask for permission, for ID to come on my block, that’s something we’ve never had before,” community organizer James Johnson said.
The Ohel draws visitors from around the world to pay respect to the late Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.
Community leaders said the crowds that come have always been disruptive, and they’ve worked with city agencies to prepare.
“To be planning with an agency for four or five months and then, a few days before they completely change the plan,” Councilmember Nantasha Williams said. “That doesn’t feel like a true partnership.”
Williams said residents felt shut out of parts of their own neighborhood.
“They have the right to come, they have the right to be here, but not at the detriment of community members not feeling welcome in their own home,” Williams said.
The NYPD said the security measures were necessary.
“Over the past few years, the Jewish community has been the target of record levels of antisemitism,” the department said in a statement. “So of course the NYPD would have a presence here to ensure this important Jewish site is safe.”
The department said it offered temporary parking placards and instructed officers to help residents access their homes and blocks.
The pilgrimage will likely return next year, but residents said trust between the community and city agencies still has to be rebuilt.