BY: SHANT SHAHRIGIAN

City charities are joining together to fight hunger and hate, two troubling tragedies taking a toll on many New Yorkers.

The Met Council, one of the most prominent Jewish nonprofits, is teaming up with other organizations throughout the Big Apple to offer free food donations and a message of hope and inclusion amid an alarming spike in hate crimes.

Hate crimes are up more than 67% so far this year, compared with the same time period in 2020, according to the NYPD.

“There’s no better way to prevent hate than by actually working with someone and extending yourself for a different community,” Met Council CEO David Greenfield told the Daily News on Sunday.

“Having people realize Jews and Asians are coming together, Jews and African Americans are coming together, Jews and Muslims — that’s really the idea, to set an example,” he said.

The effort was set to begin on Monday, when the Met Council planned to partner with La Jornada Food Pantry to give away packages of food in Flushing, Queens.

All the food will be kosher, with extra touches for local communities, Greenfield said. For instance, food giveaways for Muslim New Yorkers will include dates, a traditional part of the ongoing holiday Ramadan.

The Met Council is also partnering with the Harlem Boys and Girls Club, Catholic Charities of Brooklyn and Queens, the Council of People’s Organizations and the Chinese Planning Council.

“Fighting hunger can help fight hate, said Greenfield, a former City Council member. There are a lot of different myths about different communities,” he said. “The reality is, every community in New York has people who are struggling because of the pandemic. The ability to come together and say, ‘We’re going to help each other out,’ I think that’s the most powerful way to combat hatred.”

The Met Council expects to distribute 5,000 boxes of food through the new partnerships. “If the effort goes well, it could become a regular event, Greenfield said”.