On the eighth day of Chanukah, Jan. 2, the Riverdale Y held its annual Chanukah celebration in partnership with Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson and the New York Police Department’s 50th Precinct Community Affairs Unit.
Rabbi Scott Kalmikoff, the Riverdale Y’s director of community engagement, opened with the origins of the dreidel. Kalmikoff recalled, “As kids, we’re taught ancient Greeks were trying to stop the Jews from practicing Judaism. Jews were secretly learning Torah. When someone tried to stop them, they would pretend to play this game. That’s a cute story. It has no historic truth, but it’s a story we’re all told.”
Kalmikoff revealed, “Centuries ago, in Europe, people played a gambling game with a spinning top, called a teetotum, what we know as the modern dreidel. We were also taught the letters on the dreidel (nun, gimmel, hey and shin) are the acronym ‘nes gadol haya sham,’ a great miracle happened there. I’m sorry, friends, this is also not historically true. I know guys, I’m sorry. I’m ruining everything you know about Chanukah.”
The rabbi continued, “The letters stood for the rules of the game. Land on Nun, you get nicht (nothing), Gimmel gets gantze gelt (all the money), Hey gets halb (half), and Shin, you shtel (pay or put in). Our ancestors put Hebrew letters on the dreidel for which rules to follow.” Kalmikoff continued, “‘Nes gadol haya sham’ is cute, nice and we love it, but not historically true. There’s a difference between Jewish history and Jewish memory. Those things are not always the same. Although the song describes dreidels made out of clay back in Europe, dreidels were made from lead. Today most dreidels are made from wood or plastic.”
Kalmikoff further disclosed, “Original latkes were not made from potatoes; potato is a New World food. After this side of the world was discovered by the Europeans, they brought the potato back to Europe, Africa and Asia.” After explaining that original latkes were made from cheese, following the custom to eat dairy on Chanukah. Kalmikoff apologized. “I am so sorry if I ruined the holiday for everyone.”
New York City Councilmember Eric Dinowitz said, “Rabbi Scott’s education was a little jarring for me, but I want to tell the families and parents, grandparents, community members and kids here, you know, there is a lot that we do in the city council uplifting, supporting and protecting the Jewish community through education.”
Dinowitz, chair of the Jewish Caucus, continued, “A few weeks ago, we had the second annual Chanukah celebration in City Hall Council Chambers. It’s very special to be in the people’s house in New York City, celebrating Jewish traditions, and especially with everything going on in politics, celebrating our Jewish identity and singing Hatikvah. We’ve done events like this for my colleagues to uplift the Jewish community, the Jewish experience.” He described hosting the first model seder for New York City councilmembers and Holocaust survivors. “Everyone representing New York City experienced the joys of Pesach. In my first year, we increased funding addressing hate crimes in the city budget. We secured free trips for every eighth grader to the Museum of Jewish Heritage to learn from their exhibit what hate can do. We’re educating my colleagues and our children. We just passed a bill that will allow schools like Kinneret to get reimbursed for school safety agents to keep our kids safe.”
He concluded, “On Chanukah, we hear this refrain: a little bit of light can light the darkness. Even little actions, everything you do can have an impact on the world. Those are the values I take with me to the city council. On Chanukah, I am reminded why I do what I do.”
New York State Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz remarked, “It’s very important we keep our students and teachers safe. Before Oct. 7, there had been a significant rise in hate crimes. Two communities were the targets of the biggest increase, the Asian-American community and the Jewish community. After Oct. 7, things skyrocketed. They say there’s been an uptick. There hasn’t been an uptick, there’s been an explosion of hate crimes.”
He added, “I introduced legislation to address the issue of masking. During the pandemic, I was a huge advocate of people wearing masks, but not masks that cover your whole face and head. A mask over your nose and mouth; protection of other people. I still advocate for those who want to wear masks. I introduced legislation in conjunction with the ADL, JCRC, NAACP, Urban League and other groups in a coalition to essentially ban masking. Not N-95 masks, but masks covering up everything because they don’t want their identities to be known; because they’re up to no good.”
The event also included Kinneret Day School students’ musical performances, menorah lighting and sufganiyot.
