NEW YORK (VINnews) — Mayor Eric Adams doubled down on comments he made Wednesday, comparing an 84-year-old whose family fled the Holocaust to a plantation owner.
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At a town hall event in Hamilton Heights on Wednesday, Adams was interrupted by Jeanie Dubnau, an advocate for housing rights and an assistant professor of biology at Rutgers University.
She confronted him for supporting a recent decision that would result in rent increases for tenants in rent-stabilized apartments.
The exchange between the mayor and Dubnau began when she stood up, pointed at Adams and asked, “Why in New York City, where the real estate is controlling you, Mr. Mayor, why are we having these horrible rent increases last year and this year?” She was referring to rent increases in rent-stabilized housing recently approved by the city’s Rent Guidelines Board, appointed by the mayor.
“OK, first, if you’re going to ask a question, don’t point at me and don’t be disrespectful to me. I’m the mayor of this city, and treat me with the respect that I deserve to be treated. I’m speaking to you as an adult,” Adams said.
“Do not stand there as if you own someone on a plantation,” the mayor scolded her during the panel.
“Give me the respect I deserve, and engage in the conversation,” he added. “Up here in Washington Heights, treat me with the same level of respect I treat you. So don’t be pointing at me, don’t be disrespectful to me, speak with me as an adult, because I’m a grown man. I walked into this room as a grown man, and I’m gonna walk out of this room as a grown man. I answered your question.”
On a Friday radio interview on 1010 WINS, Adams defended his reaction.
“She disrupted [the meeting], and then she degraded me in her communication. I will not tolerate disrespect towards public service, and as the mayor of this city, I will not tolerate disrespect towards myself,” Adams reiterated in the radio interview.
He also claimed that her outburst was part of a broader national trend of disrespect towards police officers, religious groups, and other government employees.
“I represent this city, and we must initiate a more constructive dialogue on how we communicate with each other, both locally and nationally,” he added.
A German by birth, 84-year-old Jeanie Dubnau was born in Belgium when her parents were staying there before the Second World War. However, they returned home when she was a toddler, only to find themselves amidst the Nazi terror regime.
As a result, they were forced to escape the country with their daughter, first to Belgium, then to France, and finally, when the War ended, to New York City’s Big Apple neighborhood, where she has been residing since she was eight.
Her question had nothing but nothing to do with the mayor’s skin color. Using the race card for virtually every disagreement only diminishes the specter of ACTUAL racism.
pause, take a deep breath, and give it a think. the “plantation owner” phrase is a little too glib, but maybe he needs to get used to the idea that he IS a servant of the people. if he wanted “respect”, why did he go into politics? maybe the job of “mayor” isn’t for him…
Being NYC Mayor is being part of the big leagues. If Mr. Adams insists on being treated with kid gloves and can’t take some strong questions, he can always go back to the minors, like Brooklyn Borough Hall.
she was annoying but part of being a grownup, mr adams, is not whining like a crybaby if someone is disrespectful to you.
As a mayor he has done nothing for nyc
Want respect Mr adams? Not spending tens of millions, or is it hundreds of millions, of TAXPAYER dollars on illegal aliens and not putting them before the residents of your city would be a very good place to start. RESPECT IS EARNED pal. You don’t dictate to others that they should respect you. Reducing the violent crime rate may earn you respect as well. Just saying. Untill then, zip it!
Why doesn’t she buy a 100 family building and let 100 families live there totally rent free. Why can the mayor or anybody else say how much a private landlord who owns a private building can charge rent or what increases he can take. Having a car and buying groceries are just as necessary and nobody says how much they can charge or what increases the can take. By the way studies show that if they did away with all rent regulations and let the free market rein, rents will go down. If the government has to provide affordable housing they should buy buildings or build more projects and provide housing, not make the private sector do so without any benifits to them just penalizing them for doing so.
Remember what Jackie Mason said about David Dinkins, it applies here as well. This guy is a big disappointment.
Her being Jewish and a child holocaust survivor has ZERO to do with anything. Did he know her background? NO. Did she bring up slavery? NO. Does he have every right to demand respect from a tempermental anti-rent militant when she was finger-pointing and yelling at him? YES. Just another click-bait piece, a nothing-kugel piece already forgotten by everyone.
Rent controls, by definition, should be declared unconstitutional as the State is policing pricing on private enterprise. The New York landlords should take this to the Supreme Court while they still can.
I’m no fan of Adams (he’s terrible) and his comment was reprehensible and stupid and show that he is not fit for his public office, however, simple math will show that this woman didn’t do much “fleeing”. 2023-84= 1939. The war was over by the time she was 5. She probably has no recollection of the experience.
I’m not trying to downplay any challenges she may have faced as an immigrant but the headline is misleading and dishonest and attempts to taint the readers opinion to sympathize with her before reading the article.
Will the very recently announced and appointed Adams NYC Jewish council (Judenrat in the German language) call out the mayor for this despicable beating up on an old woman while trying to avoid an uncomfortable line of questioning?
If the Mayor’s feelings were hurt by the woman, maybe he can get a therapist to work with him from Charlene De Blasio.
If he can’t handle politics, he should get out of politics. How did slaves get into his answer. Affirmative action, anyone?
Kudos to the Mayor, we have free speach, can disrespect politicians, but so can politicians.
She was very disrespectful by accusing him of being in the pocket of the real estate industry. So she needed to be ready to get it back.
BTW, the high rent increases where just so owners shouldn’t lose money on these apartments. As inflation (and income) increased by a lot.
Liltte loser cant even speak proper english, the word is ask not axe you bigot, respect is earned not bestowed on you becasue enough stupid people voted for you.
Nothing to do with Holocaust, please.
The Mayor is just insecure, he has thin skin, and coudln’t handle a little criticism, especially coming from an older woman. Maybe she reminded him of his 5th grade teacher or something.
The guy has thin, very thin skin and probably needs some self-confidence coaching. It’s like his essence was being negated by the question.
How this turned into an article about the Holocaust beats me.
Much more likely that he is a misogynist and can’t handle being criticized by a woman.
ADAMS supports the 18 Yeshivas that were cited as giving sub-standard education in the Report. See-
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/s1fsat6o3
Worse mayor than de blasio hard to believe. Racism is his come back line
She insulted him from the beginning. He defended himself. The title of this article is misleading.
A respectable man no longer is respectable when he rants and demands respect!
He is disgusting
And yidden continue to vote for these Demorats. WAKE UP! He is not a friend of Yidden nor will he ever be. Inspite of what the Boro Park & Williamsbug Rabbonim say.
Adams has turned out to be a disappointment as Mayor. However, if you recall, he was the best candidate out there, given the roster of candidates at the time. Since the Democrats own City Hall and there’s zero chance a Republican will become Mayor anytime soon, that’s all we can do.
yaffed troll again trying to make believe that frum jews are racist, this is an old yaffed troll shtick that the odious hate peddler has been engaging in for years most reprehensibly in his notorious article in the daily news, yaffed trolls and the odious hate peddler should be ashamed of themselves for spreading hate and lies!!!
Nice to see now VIN supports this ultra-liberal anti-rent activist vs landlord control of NYC.
That she survived the Holocaust does not give her license to be so grossly disrespectul to the Mayor. He is a respectful man in his own right and his position mandates respect. And no he is not worse than DeBlasio. He is doing everything he can to restore order in and to a city that has now been overrun by extremist leftists in Albany, Washington DC and in the City Council. He’s a decent guy in a really tough spot.
What does being a Holocaust survivor have to do to being disrespectful to the Mayor, there’s was no discussions about the Holocaust, the Mayor I’d everything in his power to bring back the City after a disastrous 8 years, so it’s time to support and stand with him with respect.
Rabbi Berish Freilich
A German by birth, she was born in Belgium!
As Mayor who was elected by the people of New York he deserves respect .He may be an idiot but even Moshe was commanded to respect Pharaoh,
Adams was endorsed by the Minkcatcher Rebbeee.
Jack wad
New York mayor should have never spoke to that lady the way he did because he opened a subject that no matter weather she has a plantation or not it’s none of his business he is a public official and his job is to give the people answers not bring up slavery. But he best keep his mouth shut because he maybe very well end up working for her on her so called plantation. Then he could retrace his roots. The people put him in office and they could very easily get him out and back to the projects you go where you belong. So you could get a taste of what it means to be poor.
Racial warfare heating up for the summer, G-d forbid.
Well, he is completely in the right
Tell her to take her liberal trash elsewhere.
just another day on the democrat plantation.
can someone explain “racial equity” to this woman?
The mayor is right