In football, there are usually three B’s tailgaters keep in mind: Burgers, brats, and beer.
When it comes to Super Bowl Sunday, however, when parties move indoors, menus tend to change to less barbecue-intensive fare and foods fit more for large groups gathered around a television. And while many Super Bowl parties feature heaps of beef-laden cheesy nachos, hot wings with bleu cheese dressing, and pork, kosher football fans — and kosher caterers — have adapted.
“It’s an American holiday,” said Bobby Shorr, co-owner of Harold’s Kosher Market in Paramus. “It’s a big holiday. It’s a very big catering weekend for all kinds of delis. We look forward to it.”
The 19-year-old accused of firebomb and arson attacks on two area synagogues pleaded not guilty at his first arraignment in Hackensack Superior Court on Wednesday, while his attorney requested a change of venue outside of Bergen County for the trial.
Authorities arrested 19-year-old Anthony M. Graziano of Lodi late Monday night in connection with attacks on Congregation K’hal Adath Jeshurun of Paramus and Congregation Beth El in Rutherford. Bergen County Prosecutor John L. Molinelli elaborated on the events leading to Graziano’s arrest during a press conference Tuesday afternoon in Paramus. Graziano allegedly used gasoline in the Paramus arson and Molotov cocktails in Rutherford. In both cases, Graziano rode his bike to the synagogues.
Authorities do not believe there is a connection between a recent string of anti-Semitic attacks and a batch of anti-Semitic fliers mailed out to synagogue and communal leaders last week. Nevertheless, precautions are being taken, as the North Jersey Jewish community has been on heightened alert since a series of attacks on area synagogues began before Chanukah.
The flier — entitled “Wall Street Jews” and featuring mock-ups of magazine covers featuring distorted pictures of Jewish financiers — was sent out over the last two weeks to a number of area synagogues and institutions, including the Jewish Federation of North Jersey and this paper. Some of the fliers listed Anti-Defamation League (ADL) National Director Abraham Foxman and a New York address on the return label.
The North Jersey Jewish community breathed a sigh of relief earlier this week after the arrest of a suspect in the firebombing and arson of two area synagogues, but communal leaders continued to urge caution and vigilance.
Two weeks ago, the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey (JFNNJ) held a security briefing for Jewish communal leaders. The organization intends to follow up early next month with a series of workshops with Community Security Service, a New York-based organization that trains volunteers for Jewish institutions to guard against and report suspicious activity around their institutions.
The 19-year-old accused of attacks on two area synagogues pled not guilty at his first arraignment in Hackensack Superior Court on Wednesday, while his attorney requested a change of venue outside of Bergen County for the trial.
Authorities arrested 19-year-old Anthony M. Graziano of Lodi late Monday night in connection with attacks on Congregation K’hal Adath Jeshurun of Paramus and Congregation Beth El in Rutherford. Bergen County Prosecutor John L. Molinelli elaborated on the events leading to Graziano’s arrest during a press conference Tuesday afternoon in Paramus. Graziano allegedly used gasoline in the Paramus arson and Molotov cocktails in Rutherford. In both cases, Graziano rode his bike to the synagogues.
In the wake of last week’s attack on a Rutherford synagogue, social media is helping create a new sense of security there.
Adam Wolf, a West Orange resident who works in real estate, grew up in Rutherford and his parents live two blocks from Temple Beth El, the site of last week’s firebombing. When he heard about the attack, Wolf wanted to do something to help, and the result has been a viral campaign through e-mail, Facebook, and Twitter to raise money for the shul’s security upgrades.
Neighborhood watch organizations are nothing new, but a group of security professionals five years ago decided to localize the idea even more by creating Community Security Service, a volunteer organization that trains members of Jewish organizations in vigilance.
“Law enforcement can’t do everything on their own and we have the ability to help them,” said Joshua Glice, CSS’s director of synagogue and school operations . “It’s very important that the community try to help. Nobody will know the members of a congregation as well as the congregants themselves.”
Bergen County is home to more than 70 synagogues, 13 day schools, and an ever-growing number of kosher restaurants. Jewish life is flourishing here, so the recent anti-Semitic attacks have raised questions about how “it” could happen here and how safe Jews are in northern New Jersey generally.
“We’ve always known that New Jersey is not immune from hate groups,” said Etzion Neuer, acting director of the Anti-Defamation League’s New Jersey office and a Bergen County resident. “As long as extremist groups have operated in this country, New Jersey has been a home to these movements, as well.”
While some dreamed of sugar plums and candy canes, a motley crew of gastric warriors gathered at Teaneck’s Cedar Lane Pedestrian Plaza Sunday morning, the fifth day of Chanukah, to put away enough potato pancakes to claim the title of champion of the seventh annual Ma’adan latke eating competition.
Last year’s winner, Teaneck Deputy Mayor Adam Gussen, entered the contest as the heavy favorite. While chugging a pitcher of water in between bites on his way to finishing nine latkes in the five-minute time limit, however, Gussen was upset by newcomer Marcos Owens of Hillside, who finished with 10. (In the interest of full disclosure, this reporter devoured seven latkes, a new personal best.)
In a pivotal scene in the 1981 movie “Superman II,” a child is horsing around on the railing overlooking Niagara Falls when he slips into the rushing waters. Before he can plunge into what would surely be a watery grave, however, Superman flies in for a last-minute catch. In the roar of approval from the crowd, careful listeners can hear one woman in a thick New York accent utter, “Of course, he’s Jewish.”
Perhaps that woman knew that Superman’s Kryptonian name was a very biblical sounding Kal-El, which (when written in Hebrew) means “Voice of God.” The modern comic-book industry has been built on the shoulders of Jewish artists, from Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster to Stan Lee.
