Community leaders in Northeast Queens held a rally on Friday to condemn a rise in hate crimes against the Jewish community.
"We need to be light, the examples of light for the community to say that darkness will never win," Council Member Paul Vallone said.
Vallone and Council Member Barry Grodenchik, State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, Assembly Members Edward Braunstein and Nily Rozic were also in attendance for the press conference held at the Samuel Field YMCA.
The gathering came on the heels of an announcement by the NYPD, earlier this month, that they've seen a 94% increase in reported hate crimes against the Jewish community in the last year.
"We want everyone to live in peace and harmony in Queens. And that has been a wonderful story for, for hundreds of years. I have a message for the bad guys: you keep it up and we're gonna find you," Grodenchik said.
On Friday, Mayor Bill de Blasio and Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced an increase in the reward amount, from New York State’s current $5,000 reward to a joint State-City $20,000 reward, for any information leading to an arrest and conviction for a hate crime.