Hundreds of supporters of Brooklyn-based New York City Council member Kalman Yeger clashed with a much smaller group of protesters Thursday night who were outraged over a tweet he wrote Wednesday saying, “Palestine doesn’t exist.”
That comment infuriated people. But Yeger supporters were outraged that protesters would deny the lawmaker the right to free speech, and that Council Speaker Corey Johnson is considering removing him from the Immigration Committee on the Council because of the tweet, and its resulting political backlash.
Nearly 100 people all told were gathered outside Yeger’s office at around 6 pm Thursday, clashing over the tweet.
Palestine does not exist.
There, I said it again.
Also, Congresswoman Omar is an antisemite. Said that too.
Thanks for following me. https://t.co/apM565HoEV— Kalman Yeger (@KalmanYeger)
Yeger, a Democrat, is serving his first term in the New York City Council’s 44th district. The district includes all or parts of the Bensonhurst, Borough Park, Gravesend, Kensington, and Midwood neighborhoods in Brooklyn.