New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Monday that the city would fine a Brooklyn ultra-Orthodox synagogue $15,000 for a maskless wedding that drew a crowd of thousands in defiance of COVID-19 restrictions. The Yetev Lev temple in Williamsburg planned and hosted the Nov. 8 wedding of the head rabbi’s grandson in complete secrecy. News of the event broke over the weekend when the New York Post published footage of thousands of men in traditional black hats singing and dancing shoulder-to-shoulder without face coverings. New York City’s coronavirus regulations prohibit large indoor gatherings. De Blasio said, “There is going to be a summons for $15,000 immediately for that site. And there could be additional consequences quite soon, as well. That’s just not acceptable.” The city is in the midst of an alarming surge of coronavirus cases, much like the United States at large. The announcement of the fine comes the same day as New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state’s health officer attempted to quash a similar massive wedding in Kiryas Joel, an ultra-Orthodox community in upstate New York.
