Ancestry
Ancestry

The measles outbreak has hit New York City. Literature targeting Orthodox Jews is behind it.

The first major measles outbreak in New York State this year may have started in upstate New York, but it’s officially reached the epicenter — New York City.

For several months, officials in New York City have been encouraging members of ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities in the Brooklyn area of New York City to vaccinate their children in an attempt to squash the rapidly growing number of measles cases in the region. In addition to providing education about the vaccine and talking to local rabbis, they have also tried keeping unvaccinated children from attending school.

Despite those efforts, there have been 285 confirmed cases of the infection since September with 21 of them leading to hospitalization. It’s the largest measles outbreak the city has seen in over three decades. So this week, officials took a more staunch approach — Mayor Bill de Blasio declared a public health emergency.

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Family

After a fire consumed this Mosque, a neighboring synagogue gave them a place to worship.

Last week, a devastating fire left  hundreds of Muslims without their religious sanctuary.

The fire destroyed part of the Islamic Society of Mid-Manhattan mosque, a place of worship that catered to a sizeable portion of practicing Muslims in New York City.

When the nearby  Central Synagogue heard about the incident, they sprung into action.

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Ocasio-Cortez explains how she beat one of the country's most powerful politicians.

After her historic win, everyone wants to know how she did it.

On June 26, congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez stunned the political world with her historic win over Rep. Joe Crowley, one of the most powerful Democrats in the House of Representatives.

Her primary victory is part of a wave of women finding newfound success at the ballot box.

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A surprise sweet 16 took place on the subway. It showed humanity at its best.

'Can strangers in a subway car come together and have a party?'

Addie Weyrich wanted to do something spectacular for her friend Jenny Gorelick's sweet 16.

So she decided to throw Gorelick a surprise party — on a New York City subway train.

Photo by Ari Scott for improveverywhere.com.

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