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Brooklyn: $1M Fund For Hikind’s Plans To Fight Abuse Hasn’t Been Used


Excerpts from a NY Daily News article: None of the nearly $1 million set aside to tackle abuse in New York’s ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities has been spent, even as another program set up to help scrambles for cash.

The state has earmarked $950,000 since April 2009 to fund Assemblyman Dov Hikind’s plans to teach Hasidic Jews to “speak up”.

But the money sits untouched as Hikind figures out the details of Shomrei Yeldainu – Hebrew for “Guardians of our Children” – the Daily News has learned.

“You have to develop something that is done correctly working with the rabbis and leaders,” said Hikind (D-Brooklyn).

The $950,000 was included in the 2009 state budget for the Office of Family and Children’s Services, said Matt Anderson, a budget spokesman for Gov. Paterson.

It’s the first time the state has funded an abuse program geared toward helping a specific ethnic group.

While Hikind’s program waits to spend its vast funding, another is making do with much less. Project Kol Tzedek – Hebrew for “Voice of Justice” – is up and running on a relative shoestring budget.

Kol Tzedek was created in April 2009 within the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office.

A $40,000 grant from Altria Group Inc., a cigarette company, pays the salary of the program’s sole orthodox Jewish social worker.

Nearly 100 people have called the hotline and more than 30 ultra-Orthodox Jewish men have been arrested, including 16 who have been charged with felony crimes.

(Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/)



18 Responses

  1. Is the accompanying photo of Dov laughing with the governor intended to give an even worse slant and taste to this story than it already has?
    YWN should call Dov and ask for his response to this article which clearly seems to be implying that he is guilty of, at the least, not taking care of a problem the state has funded him to take care of.

  2. to dov this is called bringing home the bacon , mind the pun , however to most other people bringing home the bacon means helping parents with the yeshiva tuition bills.

  3. Anyone who is literate and reads the newspapers knows what’s going on in our community and r”l the tragic need for these funds to help stem the growing magaifa in our community with abuse.

    These funds are desperately needed to educate the parents and children and to provide therapy for victims before they go off the derech and / or harm themselves.

    I only hope that Dov disperses the funds to the right individuals who have proven their ability and dedication to helping this segment of “our community”, Too much money has gone wasted to “the big mosdos” who have a wide ranging agenda and don’t concentrate on this area of devastation to our children.

  4. Smart2:
    A fake phony fraud?! Wake up man! Do you know what’s going on?! There were just 2 cases of Rabbis that were on trial for this and there’s an ongoing trial right now of one of the sickest molesters who allegedly has been at it for years. We have a SERIOUS problem on our hands. If you don’t know about it speak to a Rav who knows what’s going on. Denial doesn’t help anyone but the perpetrators of these sick crimes.

  5. It is a real fact that the money is needed. There is another true fact and that is to make sure that the money is used appropriately. I am not as concerned with the fact that the money hasn’t been used as yet, as I am that it should not go to the wrong people.

    I don’t know how the committee is being set up, if applications are being provided or if there are a network of Social Workers working with Dov to assure that the appropriate programs are put into place. I would so much more prefer a group of individual therapists joining in Dov’s efforts than an established organization who would dearly want to get their hands on the money. Organizations who have proven failure in the past should not get one cent of the funding, rather it should go to organizations with a proven record of helping and aiding the public and making sure the money goes where it is intended.

  6. Zalmy, the problem is that people like you don’t want to see the real world. Wake up – Yeshiva world has the same problems as the outside world.

  7. to those of you who are asking me questions like: “how old are you?” or “what planet do you live on?” –

    with all due respect to you and your opinions, i choose to follow the lead of the da’as torah of our gedolim, shlit”a.

    when there are important issues in our tzibbur which need to be addressed, we look to our gedolim to direct us in these matters (not politicians).

    if the gedolim, shlit”a felt that we needed such services, they would have surely raised the necessary funds to create them, much as they do for many other worthy tzedakos.

    while politicians (such as Mr. Hikind) can do much good for the tzibbur, their ideas, programs, motivations, etc. should not be confused with da’as torah which only the gedolim represent.

    the bottom line is that the fact that Mr. Hikind says that something is needed does not make it so. again, it is our da’as torah that leads our community, not politicians.

    and again, i repeat that the fact that the money referenced in this article has not been spent only further proves that there was obviously little need for it to begin with.

  8. #15 and #1 – Everyone should be happy that funds are being made available for protecting our kids. If as you suggest there is no need and we are ‘taking care of the problems’, how come 9 out of 10 criminals in the frum community in Israel are in for sex crimes and abuse – Yes 9 out of 10 – and I have no doubt that that it’s probably similar in the US excluding fraud cases. Recent studies show that abuse is the ‘frum world’ is as prevalent as in the secular communities. Yes 1/4 girls and 1/6 boys are abused my the time they reach 18 years of age. I suggest you read Rav Halberstams Teshuva on the permissibility of reporting abuse to the police. Also realize that the current situation in our communities is not dissimilar to the catholic church – if we continue to ‘circle the wagons’ and have uneducated and untrained people dealing with this issue – there will be an enormous Chillul Hashem. Ubeartem HaRa Mikirbecha – the abuse is evil and is already destroying many of our youth. It’s time to send an unequivocal message to the abusers – you will be caught and you will be punished and we will place restrictions on you and the Rabbis are all going to be against you too.

  9. Kudos to The Yeshiva World, which has no problem knocking Dov Hikind whenever it deems it possible! Keep it up, as some people have not gotten the point. Better yet, close this post like others that are “supposedly” done to limit Loshon Horah.

  10. There is a term called Chossid Shote. People think that any type of Mesira is Usser. Chillul Shabbos is an obligation in order to save a life on Shabbos, it is a Mitzva. The same here, AN ABUSER BELONGS IN JAIL, in most abuse cases, YES, “MESIRA”, is a MITZVA, It saves Yidishe Doros and Neshomes.

  11. OMG Zalmy, you must be kidding!
    Speak to anyone that deals with kids at risk, and you’ll hear that about 80% of them were abused (more often by a family member than a rebbi).
    R’ shimon Russel spoke recently in brooklyn and laid down the facts. the frum therapists are loaded with this stuff.
    as for what the money could be used for: a few weeks ago there was a workshop for parents in lakewood about “boundaries”. there should be ten of them given in every community with practicaly manditory attendence! if we can get 3000 people to a dinner or tzedaka event why can’t we get more for such a vital issue.

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