Governor Hochul: “I stand here to tell you that New Yorkers will never tolerate evil. Whether it's committed here in our homeland or in Israel, we will never, ever tolerate evil. In such moments of darkness and in cruelty, yes, we are called upon to pray for peace. But justice first.”
Hochul: “[A]s Governor of the State of New York, I am so proud to govern a state that has the largest Jewish population in the world outside of Israel. I'm proud of that. You're proud of that. We are all proud of that. And I'll continue to fight antisemitism every place it rears its ugly head. We will defeat evil right here in New York. Let's win this, everyone. Let's stick together. New York stands with Israel.”
Earlier today, Governor Hochul delivered remarks at the “New York Stands with Israel” vigil and rally in New York City.
VIDEO of the event is available on YouTube here and in TV quality (h.264, mp4) format here.
AUDIO of the event is available here.
PHOTOS of the event are available on the Governor's Flickr page.
A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:
Albert Einstein once said, “The world is in greater peril from those who tolerate or encourage evil than those who actually commit it.” I stand here to tell you that New Yorkers will never tolerate evil. Whether it's committed here in our homeland or in Israel, we will never, ever tolerate evil. In such moments of darkness and in cruelty, yes, we are called upon to pray for peace. But justice first. There must be justice for the slaughter of babies and children and grandmothers and families torn apart by the horror of what happened to their loved ones. And that's exactly what we're going to continue to do.
And I want to thank Linda for her support of the UJA and all of them. And yes, we will give generously. We must reach deep into our pockets because there are those who live far away. But we are united as one family because New York and Israel will always stand together. And they need our help now, so be generous. I also want to thank Ambassador Erdan, who we just heard from. Just a few short hours ago, I was with the Ambassador and the Consul General in their offices. We sat there together as he watched President Biden talk about how the United States will be there for Israel in good times and in bad. And that is important to have that commitment from our President, Joe Biden. I want to thank Noam Gilboord, the Interim CEO of JCRC and all the organizations.
I'll be brief. I'll be brief. People are experiencing deep, deep pain in our hearts. There are families, there are New York families who don't know the outcome of their loved ones at this point in time. This is not the end. This is just the end of the beginning. Because not only will we seek justice, we'll make sure that New Yorkers here in America, in our own state, are safe as well. You can count on our NYPD, our State Police, our Joint Terrorism Task Force. We stand together to protect every single one of you. We'll continue to protect you.
And I'll tell you, as Governor of the State of New York, I am so proud to govern a state that has the largest Jewish population in the world outside of Israel. I'm proud of that. You're proud of that. We are all proud of that. And I'll continue to fight antisemitism every place it rears its ugly head. We will defeat evil right here in New York. Let's win this, everyone. Let's stick together. New York stands with Israel.