STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The newly established Jewish Tea Party of New York will hold its first official event Wednesday, a Staten Island Stands With Israel event co-hosted by the Staten Island Tea Party.



"It is time for Americans to stand and proclaim their support of the only true democracy in the Middle East," said group founder Ilya Galak, editor of Citizens Magazine, a publication that caters to the borough's burgeoning immigrant Russian population.



The event will be held at 7 p.m. at the Staaten, West Brighton.



Said Galak: "Israel is a staunch ally of the United States in a terribly dangerous region. The people of Israel need to know that ordinary American citizens stand shoulder-to-shoulder in their defense."



The event will feature guest speakers, including former Conservative Party gubernatorial candidate Herb London, and a viewing of a rally being held in Jerusalem by conservative personality Glenn Beck.



"The response has been tremendous so far," said Galak, who said seating would be limited to 350 people at the event. He said seats have been filling through word-of-mouth and Staten Island Tea Party mailings.



More information on the event can be found at www.standwithisraelny.com.



Staten Island Tea Party co-organizer Frank Santarpia said he plans to work closely with the new group. "While we don't want to see groups split into a million special-interest categories, this is a large and very important niche that deserves autonomy," he said.



He said the Jewish vote would be particularly important in next year's race for the White House, with President Barack Obama criticized for not standing up strongly enough for Israel.



"We welcome the introduction of a platform from which Jewish conservatives can deliver their message to America," said Santarpia.



The Jewish Tea Party of New York shares three core beliefs with the larger Tea Party movement: Constitutionally limited government, fiscal sanity and free markets.



Mindful that many Russians here fled the communist Soviet Union, the group also opposes any imposition of "socialism on the free and independent people of America."

