JERSEY CITY — The Temple Beth-El on Kennedy Boulevard in Jersey City held their annual Sabbath service honoring the late Dr. Martin Luther King on Friday.
While the theme of this event, going on its 26th year, is about the common bond between African-Americans and Jews, the service also saw prayers and a moment of silence for the victims of the Jan. 8 shooting in Tucson, Arizona. The shooting claimed six lives and a total of 19 shot by a 22-year-old gunman.
This year’s featured speaker was Rep. Donald Payne (D-10th), whose district which encompasses portions of Hudson, Union and Essex counties. Payne spoke briefly about the victims of the shooting including his Congressional colleague Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, and then asked for a moment of silence.
He then spoke about King, the victim of a gunman’s bullet on April 4, 1968 in Memphis. Payne also reminsced about personally meeting King several times during the 1960s including a 1965 fundraiser where noted Newark rabbi and civil rights advocate Joachim Prinz shared the same stage with King.
After the service, Payne was asked by a reporter if he found himself having to increase his security detail since the Tucson shooting including carrying a firearm, Payne said he didn’t “plan to do so.”
Among those in attendance at the service were Mayor Jerramiah Healy, City Councilman Steven Fulop, and Hudson County Freeholders Bill O’Dea and Jeffrey Dublin. – Ricardo Kaulessar
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