Lakewood, NJ – Thousands of people attended the rally to protest the conviction of Sholom Rubashkin, the former manager of a kosher slaughterhouse in Iowa who was sentenced to 27 years in prison last month in a fraud case that drew national attention.
The crowd at the Lake Terrace Hall on Oak Street in the industrial park spilled into the parking lot of where video monitors and speakers were set up.
The protest came about three weeks after lawyers for Rubashkin appealed his conviction. Similar rallies have been held in Brooklyn.
Asked why he cared about meat-packing manager from Iowa, Dovid Amsel, 18, of Lakewood said “He is a fellow Jew. I feel for him.”
Top rabbis from Beth Medrash Govoha here attended, including Rabbi Aryeh Kotler, who addressed the rally.
Supporters have decried the prosecution of Rubashkin as overzealous, and that the sentence was far too harsh for a first-time offender.
Video credit: Thelakewoodscoop.com