Williamsburg, NY – After a demonstration last weekend drew more police officers than protesters, cycling activists will rally again to show their support for the Bedford Avenue bike lane — but this time they’ll do it in less clothing.
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On Saturday, upwards of 50 nude and underwear-clad cyclists will ride on Bedford Avenue between Flushing and Division Avenues to protest the recent removal of 14 blocks of bike lanes from South Williamsburg’s Hasidic community, The Brooklyn Paper reports. “If you can’t handle scantily clad women … live in a place where you can have your own sanctuary, like upstate,” said Organizer Heather Loop , 27.
The so-called “freedom ride” comes after a tumultuous few weeks in South Williamsburg, starting when the city removed the Bedford Avenue bike lane, only for cycling activists to repaint it themselves a few days later. Some of the bike activists were charged for the act, and the city again removed the bike lane.
South Williamsburg resident Leo Moskowitz told Gothamist that the Hasidic community’s opposition to bike lanes has nothing to do with cyclists’ clothing, or lack thereof. “There are people who are trying to play that the nudity is the issue, but it’s not,” he said. “The main concern is the safety of our kids. There are lot of institutions and families on that Bedford Avenue stretch, and we are always really concerned about the kids being picked up and dropped off. There are sometimes small accidents where the cyclists are violating the law because they don’t stop for flashing school buses.”
Hashem save us from these goyishe animals!
Yidden daven in your houses this Shabbos, don’t expose your children to these chayas.
I hope they freeze to death!! I hope they send snow, sleet etc,.!!!
Nobody should use their left-over olive to make the bike lane slippery, it can be very dangerous.
Could you imagine if they tried doing something in a black community that is offensive to blacks
Yiddin – they are right and can dress as they please . we are in Glous even in Eretz Yisroel—
Howver, even in England municipal pools there are new dress codes instituted in respect to the moslem neighborhoods. Yiddin alle yiddin should not walk on Bedford Ave except if u must. Let them protest with themselves. Unless it is indecent exposure, they can do as they please just like your chassidishe clothing may offend others. May they all chap a pneumonia for their vindictiveness..
Such “safety” rules could then apply to bike lanes everywhere – maybe all should be elimintated.
Has anyone considered that bike lanes also provide safety to the bike riders, including the “heimishe” community??
you asked for it, you got it.
you push your values on others and people will just act more out outrageous.
It was some in the chassdesh community that brought up the cloth issue not them.
If safety was the only issue i am sure something could have been worked out, like more enforcement of traffic rules on cyclist. Cyclist can get tickets (I got a $100 ticket passing a red light on my bicycle) So the issue of safety is bull, since your only option the community offered was remove it.
In addition, in Midwood on Bedford avenue there are many school and public schools and there is no problem and there are bike lanes all over the city some on very congested streets, why is it a safety issue only where the chasediem live? Interesting
Isn’t that what they want in Williamsburg that “ZEI ZULLEN GURNISHT TRUGEN” with the Eiruv (they shouldn’t carry with the eiruv)
Can anyone please explain:
what was the real reason for the bike lane being removed? the article gives 2 differing opinions: is it the immodestly dressed people on the bikes or is it the safety of the school kids?
In a place where there is no parking available and the city is so eager to ticket drivers, how dare they make things even harder by placing bike lanes everywhere.
The city has to come up with a better solution.
Rachmune Litzlon….I am sure they will NOT stop by this protest on shabbos…All askunim in Wmsbg. should get together and ask for a sit down meeting with those groups and explain them why we oppose this BIKE lane.Maybe by communicating better we will get the RIGHT results….
let the raabunim come out with a psack that we all need to daven at home this shabbos.
Just make sure that they are properly “hydrated” along the way. Do the shomrim know about this?
Guys.. I am just wondering if it Chanukah or Purim ?
I’d be very surprised if anyone besides the organizer, Heather Loop, shows up for the bone choilling protest in 32 degree weather. If the NYPD can take the homeless off the streets into shelters in frigid weather, can they do the same to naked cyclists?
What will they lose to frostbite?
Do nothing. It will become a non issue.
We will send rabbi greenbaum to scream shabbos
I think Inciting a riot is illegal ,and coming naked is Disorderly Conduct so I wish the NYPD good luck arresting all the protesters.
I was almost struck by a bike ridr (not in williamsburg…) Cuz it was walk for me and red for cars. Who made this idiot think that he doesn’t have to stop by red light, at least yield for pedestrians, I don’t no… But anyway, that’s the story with bicycles.
They won’t have the errr ummm errr guts to pull this off. But ‘happening’ to oil the bike lane sounds like a grand plan!
Mr. Moskowitz uses a politically correct response when he says that the bike lane is a safety issue. Yet how often does someone actually get hurt, let alone injured, by a biker? We can follow that logic to conclude that cars should be banned on any street that has a school! The obvious truth is that a bike lane invites non-tznius bike riders through the middle of the community.
I ride a bike, and I am appalled that the city unpainted the bike lane, but I have to say, that a nude bike ride is ridiculous, insulting (to you), and unhealthy (for them). We should talk instead of insult. I think that reasoned debate would show that bicycles are healthier for Williamsburg than are cars, but it is a discussion that is not helped by clownishness.
Some suggestions how to send the insane to an insane asylum where they belong:
1) All it takes is a few dollars to fix the situation. Gooyim can be hired for money to entirely block any possibility for the undressed animal beasts to roam the streets.
It’s not to expensive for a rich community like Williamsburg, with plenty of multi millionaires who live there, to shell out a few small dollars to pay Goyim a minimum wage – to fill Bedford ave with a few thousand goyim to block the street completely preventing anyone form passing through on a bike with or without cloths.
2) Williamsburg Millionaire Yidden can easily pay a few hundred goyishe drivers to come down with countless TRUCKS and other vehicles to make t he hugest traffic jam every and totally grid-lock all traffic of Bedford Ave, legally or illegally. Even if they park their trucks blocking all traffic on Bedford ave, the worst that can happen is they will get a ticket of $100 bucks or even $200 bucks – a relatively very small price to pay to put these naked animals in the zoo where they belong with all other naked animals.
The “Right To Protest” works 2 ways and our Rented_Goyim can do the dirty work to block the nude behemos
I personally hate the bike lanes in chasidic willie,because they have a agenda against cars” and its so so congested that its really terrible–but yeps they are right!the way the chasidics communicated with then is so outrages!!,it could have been explained to them normally by making a meeting with them or any other normal way,but instead they said it in a way like -hey its our streets you wear this you do this–and this made them angry because hey you its NYC its not your street guys!!,BTW I’m a real chasidish yoelie,I’m just saying what’s the story here.freilichan chanika.
Chevre were not in Saudi Arabia, people are allowed to dress how they wish. Just think – some may find our Livushim offensive.
The heimeshe community in WB should protest the bikers in the same way they protest against us. Turnabout is fair play although it will be a bit cold this shabbos.
Is the great Reb. Baruch Herzfeld, Shlita participating in this?
They’re completely mishiga – its going to be 20 degrees on Shabbos.
It’s a lesson the we have to learn. Evrey action has a reaction.
I don’t get it! there is another bike lane a block away on wythe ave. And another one on kent ave.
hisgarus be’eemes applys to satmar too not only to israel.
Yamamai, the weather is supposed to be perfect for this. (Reelfeel •10)
I don’t think these people know what their dealing with. Willi people are not pacifists. The people that aren’t stopped by cops, will be subject to a lot worse. I fear this won’t end well for anyone.
As an outsider I had my doubts if it was really necessary to remove the bike lanes, now that I see the wild clownish reaction of some bicyclists, I’m just glad it was removed, those bikers themselves are proving now that removing the dangerous bike lanes was indeed the right thing to do.
Would they do that in a Muslim neighborhood? These liberals are so afraid of another skyscraper being bombed they would even side with them to protest the lanes. But since Hasidim don’t do that, they feel free to blatantly disrespect their religion in their own enclave. Hypocrites.
The organizer of this is bitter over a bad business deal with a heimishe person. Nothing to do with the “environment”
There are legal bike lanes on Kent and Wythe. If the protesters want to do something useful, let them get the Navy Yard opened for pedestrians to cross through.
If those bikers on Bedford Ave. Would respect the law I would respect them too. Its not only dangerous for a child to get hit by a bike, its also the driver is so nervous to let a child off to cross to the left, we try to block off the street and they pass from the right. cars you can block but not bikes.
and by the way, this 14 block are not wide enough for one truck or bus to pass the other and not go into the bike lane its a 2 lane road and it has to be 2 lanes because its too busy for just one lane, but for trucks and buses its one like lane with this bike line
The things all of you talking opposed the cyclists are saying makes you sick, disgusting, sorry excuses for human beings, let alone, Jews. It was people like you that made me ashamed to say I’m Jewish when I was a teen. First, there is no greater safety issue with the cyclists than there are with any old car, so that’s a load of bull. Second, obviously these chassidim are trying to turn Williamsburg into Mea Shearim, but we live in America where we share this country with every race, religion, sect, creed, & sexual orientation. So why should these cyclists have to care that you want to live a sheltered life (especially in NYC, one of the busiest cities in the world). If that’s the case, than move to Louisiana or something. Stop making your people look like heartless, arrogant, ignorant, and self-absorbent. Remember that the action of one little group actually reflects on all of us. Third, I walk through Muslim neighborhoods all the time to get to my train & not once did anyone hassle me for wearing whatever I wanted. But if I step into a chassidic neighborhood all of a sudden I’m treated like the devil himself. You don’t want your kids to see “immodesty”? Leave NYC. Simple!
Yidden do nothing. Forecast: 25 to 32 degrees, 60% chance of snow. They’ve been punished before they start.