The mayor of Rio de Janeiro, Marcelo Crivella, received the highest award bestowed by the local Jewish community, for his strong support of issues of concern to Brazilian Jews. Crivella accepted the Friend of the Rio de Janiero State Jewish Federation, or FIERJ medal, at his office last Wednesday.
Crivella, who is described as “a fervently pro-Israel evangelical Christian clergyman,” has supported several Jewish projects in Rio, including the construction of a Holocaust memorial in the city and has visited Israel 40 times.
In his remarks, Crivella said, “Our city is enlarged, ennobled and dignified with the Jewish presence to this palace, remembering its principles, its values. We owe you a lot.”
Israel’s Rio-based honorary consul, Osias Wurman, who attended the ceremony, said that there has “never such a friend of Israel and the Jewish community in City Hall,” as Crivella.
Last month, Marcelo Crivella’s wife, Sylvia, represented the mayor at the dedication of a square named for the Lubavitcher Rebbe located in a heavily Jewish neighborhood.
Mayor Crivella, also participated in the WJC’s annual #WeRemember campaign in 2019. In his post, Mayor Crivella called for combating antisemitism and all forms of hatred, genocide and xenophobia.
O prefeito do Rio de Janeiro, Marcelo Crivella, participou nesta sexta-feira, 18 de janeiro, da campanha #WeRemember (Nós Lembramos), de combate ao antissemistismo e todas as formas de ódio, genocídio e xenofobia. . Saiba mais: https://t.co/4HtvNfFKvU #PrefeituraRIO pic.twitter.com/33R4SignZp
— Prefeitura do Rio (@Prefeitura_Rio) January 18, 2019
