Hanks’ Irish Problem

Critics say the NYC Council Majority Whip’s attack on Jody’s exposed contempt for an Irish-rooted Staten Island institution.

LUTHMANN NOTE: NYC Council Member Kamillah Hanks and her defenders will try to spin this as one throwaway comment about food. Don’t buy it. In Staten Island politics, Jody’s Club Forest is not just a bar. It is a 50-year neighborhood institution tied to Irish civic life, Forest Avenue culture, the St. Patrick’s Parade orbit, and generations of political breakfast-table reality. When a Council member trashes that kind of place online, people are right to ask what sits underneath the sneer. Maybe it was carelessness. Maybe it was contempt. Maybe it was positioning for a 2028 NYS Senate run. Whatever the reasons, Hanks owes Jody’s and the neighborhood an answer. This piece is “Hanks’ Irish Problem.”

By M. Thomas Nast and Richard Luthmann

Hanks Lights Up Forest Avenue

(STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.) – Kevin Barry Love had barely come up for air at the Snug Harbor Neptune Ball before his wife lit another fire on Forest Avenue. NYC Council Member Kamillah Hanks, the Staten Island North Shore Democrat and NYC Council Majority Whip, found herself in the middle of a neighborhood uproar after Jody’s Club Forest, a West Brighton institution with a half-century of Staten Island history behind it, responded publicly to an online comment Hanks made about the restaurant, its food, and its owner.

The comment was not subtle. According to the screenshot posted by Jody’s and reported by the Staten Island Advance/SILive.com, Hanks wrote:

The comment appeared beneath a Young Democrats of Richmond County post showing that the group had checked in at Jody’s. Aidan Rivera, president of the Staten Island Young Democrats, confirmed in the comment thread that his club had met and eaten there and that Hanks made the remark beneath the post.

That is where ordinary political snark turned into something bigger. Jody’s is not just another bar and restaurant. It is a Forest Avenue staple, recently celebrating 50 years in business, and it annually hosts the Jerome X. O’Donovan Parade Breakfast before the Staten Island St. Patrick’s Parade.

In other words, Hanks did not take a cheap shot at some faceless business. Critics say she took a shot at an Irish-rooted neighborhood institution sitting in the heart of the culture she is supposed to represent.

Hanks’ Irish Problem: Jody’s Fires Back

Jody’s Club Forest did what a self-respecting Staten Island business should do. It fired back. The restaurant issued a lengthy public statement expressing disappointment that an elected official who built her public brand around supporting small businesses would make that kind of remark about a local institution in her own district.

The statement cut through the usual political fog. Jody’s said it opened its doors to the Young Democrats, welcomed them, treated them with kindness, and did not ask who they voted for. It saw customers, neighbors, and young people from the community. Hanks, by contrast, allegedly saw an opportunity to sneer.

Owner Terence Haggerty told the Advance/SILive.com that he had seen the comment around two months earlier and initially laughed it off. Then someone brought it up again, and he decided the time was right to respond.

His point was simple: you cannot badmouth a place that has been around for 50 years and sits inside your district. He also called Hanks’ suggestion that he does not support the Young Democrats “asinine,” noting that Jody’s has welcomed Young Democrats for decades.

That is the part Hanks and her defenders cannot spin away. This was not a MAGA bunker refusing service to Democrats. This was a neighborhood business hosting people across political lines, only to have the local Council member suggest the owner disliked “these kids” and only wanted their money.

Jody’s treated Democrats like neighbors. Hanks treated Jody’s like a target.

The contrast is brutal, and it is why the response hit so hard.

Hanks’ Irish Problem: The Anti-Irish Undertone

The issue is not merely that Hanks insulted the food. Restaurants get criticized every day. Owners deal with complaints. Bars survive bad reviews. The deeper issue is what critics heard underneath the comment: cultural contempt.

Jody’s Club Forest is woven into Staten Island’s Irish civic and political life. It hosts the Jerome X. O’Donovan Parade Breakfast before the St. Patrick’s Parade. It sits in a neighborhood where old-line Irish, Italian, civil-service, union, and working-class culture still means something.

When Hanks mocked the place and its owner, many heard more than personal dislike. They heard an elected official looking down at a cultural world she does not respect.

Call it class contempt. Call it anti-Irish bias. Call it the politics of sneering at the old neighborhood while pretending to represent it. Whatever label one chooses, the reaction shows that Hanks stepped on a live wire.

Staten Islanders know when a politician is punching down. They know when “community leadership” becomes selective. They know when diversity rhetoric flows one way but old ethnic neighborhood institutions are treated like punchlines.

Hanks declined to elaborate when contacted by the Advance/SILive.com, and her original comment reportedly could not be found on Facebook by Thursday morning.

That silence says plenty. A public official who will mock a local business online should have the spine to explain herself when the business responds.

Instead, Jody’s gave a community answer, Haggerty gave a neighbor’s answer, and Hanks gave no meaningful answer at all.

That is not leadership. That is hit-and-hide politics.

Hanks’ Irish Problem: Community Reaction

We contacted several NYC Irish civic, fraternal, parade, labor, cultural, and media leaders asking for comment. We have not received a response as of press time. Here is what we asked:

From: Richard Luthmann <richard.luthmann@protonmail.com>
Date: On Monday, June 22nd, 2026 at 10:27 AM
Subject: Press Inquiry: Irish-American Response to Kamillah Hanks’ Jody’s Club Comment
To: Stone6344@aol.com, Nypdemeraldsweb@aol.com, Nypd.desl1@gmail.com, Michaelmanley2853@gmail.com, Joe9281@yahoo.com, Nypd.emeralds.sully@gmail.com, Info@fdnyemerald.org, Patmcpl19@yahoo.com, Dannycav@verizon.net, Bagpipes219@yahoo.com, Dsnyemeraldsociety@gmail.com, Info@nycdemeraldsociety.org, Membership@emeraldsocietynycdoe.com, Info@gcues.org, Info@nycstpatricksparade.org, Tom@mckenna.us, Pfde125@gmail.com, Seraphimsanctuary@gmail.com, Kroppyboy@aol.com, Mail@rockawaytimes.com, Newsdesk@irishnews.com, Services@irishtimes.com, Tips@irishtimes.com, Info@irishnetwork.nyc
CC: dcarr@council.nyc.gov, fmorano@council.nyc.gov, khanks@council.nyc.gov, Morano@council.nyc.gov, agosas@nyassembly.gov, fallc@nyassembly.com, District49@council.nyc.gov, RALafontaine@protonmail.com, RickLaRiviere@proton.me, mthomasnast@protonmail.com, frankiepressman@protonmail.com, msully0916@gmail.com, jt@liquidlunchtv.com, Ashleigh.Owens@rcda.nyc.gov, info@rcda.nyc.gov, reillym@nyassembly.gov

Dear Irish-American civic, fraternal, parade, labor, cultural, and media leaders,

We are independent journalists preparing a news and opinion report concerning New York City Council Member Kamillah Hanks’ recent online comment about Jody’s Club Forest, a 50-year Staten Island institution with deep ties to Forest Avenue, neighborhood politics, Irish civic life, and the Staten Island St. Patrick’s Parade tradition:

https://www.silive.com/politics/2026/06/staten-island-business-a-forest-ave-staple-responds-to-online-post-from-politician.html

According to the Staten Island Advance/SILive.com, Jody’s Club Forest publicly responded after Hanks, a Democrat representing the North Shore and serving as City Council Majority Whip, allegedly wrote the following beneath a Young Democrats of Richmond County post after the group had checked in at Jody’s:

The reported facts are stark. Jody’s had opened its doors to the Young Democrats. The establishment says it treated them with hospitality and did not ask about political affiliation. Terence Haggerty, owner of Jody’s Club Forest, told the Advance/SILive.com that the suggestion he does not support the Young Democrats was “asinine,” noting that Jody’s has welcomed Young Democrats for decades.

Jody’s is not just another bar. It recently celebrated 50 years in business. It annually hosts the Jerome X. O’Donovan Parade Breakfast before the Staten Island St. Patrick’s Parade. It is a Forest Avenue staple woven into Staten Island’s Irish, working-class, civil-service, political, and neighborhood culture.

Hanks has pandered to the Irish community to get herself elected:

That is why this story now raises broader questions for Irish New York.

• Was Hanks merely making an ill-advised food joke, or was this something more revealing — an elected official showing disdain for a neighborhood institution with deep Irish-American roots?

• Should Irish-American organizations view this as an anti-neighborhood insult, an anti-small-business insult, or a broader cultural slight?

• Should Hanks publicly apologize to Jody’s Club Forest, Terence Haggerty, its staff, its patrons, and the wider community?

• Should Irish civic, fraternal, police, fire, sanitation, labor, cultural, and parade organizations request a formal explanation from Hanks before welcoming her at future events?

• Should parade organizations, Emerald societies, Irish cultural groups, and Irish media outlets ask Hanks to meet with community leaders to address the fallout?

• Should City Council leadership comment on whether this is acceptable conduct from a Majority Whip toward a small business in her own district?

• And most directly: if an elected official made a similar public comment about a business rooted in another ethnic or neighborhood community, would the political class treat it as harmless banter, or would there already be calls for apology and accountability?

This controversy also comes while Hanks and her husband, Kevin Barry Love, are under broader public scrutiny. Love reportedly reappeared recently at Snug Harbor’s Neptune Ball after months largely out of public view. Hanks’ office has separately faced press coverage regarding workplace complaints. Critics have also raised questions about Love’s alleged role in Staten Island political and development circles and a reported federal investigation.

https://nynewspress.com/?s=hanks

Against that backdrop, Hanks’ swipe at Jody’s does not look like an isolated social media mistake to her critics. It looks like another glimpse into a political operation they say treats old Staten Island institutions with contempt unless they are useful.

One social media commentator said this: “After reading the rant of her response, it seems to me that she is missing the point. It’s not that Jody’s doenst like Democrats, it’s that Jody’s doesn’t like her. They Love Mike McMahon, Diane Savino. Debbie Rose, Charles Fall and Jess Spanton. Maybe she and her husband should look in a mirror and ask themselves why everyone distrusts them and considers them get-overs.”

I am asking each of your organizations for comment on the following:

1. Do you believe Council Member Kamillah Hanks should apologize for her reported comment about Jody’s Club Forest?

2. Do you believe her remark reflected cultural contempt toward an Irish-rooted Staten Island institution, or was it simply ordinary political/social-media criticism?

3. Should Irish-American organizations request a formal explanation from Hanks?

4. Should Hanks be invited to meet with Irish-American civic and parade leaders to address the controversy?

5. Should City Council leadership address the conduct of a Majority Whip who publicly mocked a small business in her own district?

6. What message does silence send to Irish-American small businesses, parade organizations, civil-service families, and neighborhood institutions?

Please provide any comment, statement, or organizational position for publication. We intend to go to press shortly. If we receive your comments after press time, we will incorporate them into a follow-up.

Thank you for your attention to this matter!

If we receive responses, we will update the readership in a follow-up piece.

Hanks’ Irish Problem: Kevin Barry Love Comes Up For Air

The Jody’s Club controversy landed only days after Kevin Barry Love, Hanks’ husband, reportedly made his first meaningful public appearance in months after a heart attack. Earlier this month, Love appeared at the Snug Harbor Neptune Ball, or as one critic termed it: “A Pride Month event masquerading as a charitable function.”

For months, Love has been largely out of view, with sources saying he has rarely been seen outside his house except for medical appointments after a serious heart episode and whispers of a federal investigation. Many in Staten Island political circles believe the stress surrounding scrutiny of Love’s alleged conduct contributed to his decline. Love has reportedly looked ragged for months.

Then, at Snug Harbor’s 50th anniversary gala, Love surfaced inside one of Staten Island’s most symbolic civic rooms: a place full of cultural leaders, donors, politicians, nonprofit operators, developers, and the Island’s professional handshake class. His public absence was its own story. His Neptune Ball appearance did not end the questions. It sharpened them.

The timing creates a strange political picture. First, Love reappears after months of absence. Then Hanks gets blasted by a Forest Avenue institution with deep neighborhood roots. Behind both events sits the same question: what is happening inside the Hanks-Love operation?

Love has long been viewed by critics as more than a spouse and more than a private citizen. In Staten Island political circles, detractors describe him as a behind-the-scenes operator whose proximity to Hanks’ Council seat allegedly gave him influence, access, and leverage.

The allegations around Love are serious: developer pressure, pay-to-play whispers, public corruption concerns, and claims that the line between private muscle and public office became dangerously thin. Love has not been indicted or publicly convicted of those allegations, and that distinction matters.

But the scrutiny is real, and so is the perception problem. When the husband under that cloud reappears at a civic gala, and the Council member then gets caught insulting a 50-year neighborhood business, voters are entitled to ask whether this is public service or a family-run political bunker under stress.

Summer Respite, Winter Reckoning

Kamillah Hanks now has problems on every side. The Jody’s Club fight gave critics a clean cultural frame: a Council member accused by opponents of showing contempt toward an Irish-rooted Forest Avenue institution that has served Staten Island for 50 years.

The staff turmoil reporting gave critics another frame: a Council office under fire from complaints and allegations about workplace culture.

Kevin Barry Love gives them the most dangerous frame: the husband as alleged shadow operator, the man under scrutiny, the private citizen whose conduct keeps pulling public questions back to his wife’s government office.

This is how political trouble compounds. It rarely arrives as one clean scandal. It comes as a rhythm. A husband disappears from public view. A heart scare becomes political chatter. A health resolution raises questions about personal motivation. A gala appearance signals that the absent operator is trying to reenter the room. Then the elected official insults a beloved local business, and suddenly the old neighborhoods start talking again.

Forest Avenue remembers. The Irish community remembers. Small businesses remember. Former staffers remember. Developers remember. Staten Island remembers.

Maybe Kevin Barry Love should enjoy the summer respite. Maybe Hanks should enjoy the official smiles, the civic events, the protective language of City Council procedure, and the temporary comfort of friendly rooms. But the Jody’s Club controversy shows that her political armor is cracking in the places where Staten Island is most unforgiving: loyalty, neighborhood memory, ethnic respect, and small-business pride.

Love came up for air at Snug Harbor. Then Hanks stepped on Forest Avenue.

Summer gives cover.

Winter is coming.

Forest Avenue Remembers.

About The Author

Richard Luthmann

Richard Luthmann is a thinker, investigative journalist, and consultant with degrees from Columbia University (B.A., Philosophy), NY Law School (J.D.), and the University of Miami (LL.M). Tips: richard.luthmann@protonmail.com or (239) 631-5957.

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