Biden Administration reappoints Chelsea
rabbi Kleinbaum to religious freedom post
BY TAT BELLAMY-WALKER
President Joe Biden has reappointed
out lesbian Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum
as a commissioner of the US Commission
on International Religious Freedom
(USCIRF), which is an advisory post pertaining
to issues of religious freedom.
In her new role, Rabbi Kleinbaum, who
leads Chelsea’s LGBTQ-friendly synagogue,
Congregation Beit Simchat Torah (CBST),
will recommend international policy
changes to the Biden administration, the
secretary of state, and Congress. She will
also monitor global religious freedom issues
and compile these findings into USCIRF’s
annual report.
Kleinbaum previously served in the
same role when she was first nominated
by Senator Chuck Schumer in 2019,
though the commission’s presidential appointments
don’t need Senate approval.
The Biden administration also appointed
Khizr Khan, founder of the Constitutional
Literacy and National Unity Project, to
the same commission.
In a statement, Kleinbaum said she is
prepared to fight and protect the rights of
all individuals regardless of their religion in
Sharon Kleinbaum has been selected to rejoin the US Commission on
International Freedom.
the US and globally.
“I am deeply honored to be appointed
by President Biden to the United States
Commission on International Religious
Freedom,” she said in a written statement.
“The issues facing our world around the
PHOTO BY DONNA ACETO
role that religion plays in both liberating
people and oppressing people is at the center
of so many struggles for human rights.”
She added, “I am so moved to work
alongside the other Commissioners: Anurima
Bhargava Fred Davie and all the
others — both Democrats and Republicans
— and with the fabulous staff of USCIRF
— to make this world a better place. I am
grateful to President Joe Biden for his trust
in me and I pray for the success of the
Biden-Harris Administration daily.”
Kleinbaum’s wife, Randi Weingarten —
who serves as president of the American
Federation of Teachers — also took to
Twitter to applaud her partner’s new role.
“I’m so incredibly proud of my wife @
Skleinbaum,” Weingarten tweeted. “She’s
been a powerful voice for religious freedom,
for human rights and for LGTBQ
rights. She will bring that passion &
purpose to her re-appointment to the US
Comm’n on Int’l Religious Freedom.”
Weingarten added, “Every once in a
while I want to lift up my incredible wife…
and her daily pursuit of justice .. I am so
grateful. #ShabbatShalom.”
Kleinbaum joined CBST in 1992 during
the HIV/AIDS crisis. She has long received
praise for activism, including her protests
against the Trump-era immigration ban
in 2017 and anti-semitic crimes in New
York City.
Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership BID to grow
BY EMILY DAVENPORT
The City Council voted to approve
legislation that will expand the
boundaries of the Flatiron/23rd
Street Partnership Business Improvement
District (BID).
As of Jan. 1, 2022, the BID will be nearly
doubled in size, bringing the Partnership’s
supplemental sanitation and safety services,
homeless outreach, public space management
and beautification, marketing, business
support, and advocacy to a larger footprint
that will include 20th Street, the Sixth
Avenue gateway to the district, and more of
NoMad.
The areas joining the BID include 1,384
properties, 344 of which are commercial;
more than 20 existing or under-construction
hotels; a diverse array of retail and dining; a
plethora of cultural destinations and historic
sites; a growing residential community; and
the dynamic Sixth Avenue mixed-use corridor.
“For 15 years, the Flatiron/23rd Street
Partnership has helped cement the reputation
of Flatiron and NoMad as two of New
York City’s most vital and exiting neighborhoods
and now we look forward to having
Map of the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership BID, with the original BID
boundaries (orange) and the expansion areas for 2022 (blue).
the same impact in an expanded footprint,”
said James Mettham, executive director
of the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership.
“Our new stakeholders can look forward to
cleaner streets, more inviting public spaces,
and more support for small businesses. We
COURTESY FLATIRON/23RD STREET PARTNERSHIP BID
are grateful to Mayor de Blasio and the City
Council, in particular Speaker Corey Johnson
and Members Carlina Rivera and Keith
Powers, Manhattan Borough President Gale
Brewer, and Community Boards 4 and 5 for
their support of our BID expansion.”
The approval of the BID’s expansion follows
four years of planning and stakeholder
engagement by the Flatiron/23rd Street
Partnership in close coordination with the
New York City Department of Small Business
Services (SBS). There was also a public
review process that was delayed temporarily
due to COVID-19.
“The Flatiron Partnership has been a
lifeline to small businesses across the neighborhood,
and this expansion extends critical
services to where they are needed the most,”
said Jonnel Doris, Commissioner of the NYC
Department of Small Business Services.
“SBS works hard to provide all expansion
efforts with resources to ensure they can
reach deeply into their communities and
engage everyone in the process. I applaud
our partners in this effort, we are excited to
continue working together to see services on
the ground in this expansion area.”
Since 2006, the Partnership has served
the Flatiron District and the southern part
of NoMad, and business owners, property
owners, and residents just outside of the
BID’s original boundaries have increasingly
expressed a need for BID services on their
blocks.
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