Borough Park, NY – In this toy store, Batman and Spider-Man are not heroes.
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For one thing, said Barbara Shine, manager of Double Play Toys in Borough Park, Brooklyn, the characters encourage interest in television, and the ultra-Orthodox Jewish families who make up her clientele do not watch television. More important, those toys might also teach lessons Hasidic parents don’t want their children to learn.
Thomas the Tank Engine “is a kosher character,” she said, illustrating her store’s philosophy. “He’s not hitting and killing people. We don’t want kids to learn violence.”
Even if gift-giving is not central to Hasidic celebrations of Hanukkah, which begins Tuesday evening, toys are crucial year round. Families tend to have flocks of children, and mothers need ways to amuse them when the fathers are at synagogue or study hall and when the parents take their customary Sabbath naps. So Mrs. Shine, an effervescent mother of seven who is strictly Orthodox but does not follow any sect’s grand rabbi the way most Hasidim do, knows she has a ready market. And her business flourishes because she understands the neighborhood’s unwritten codes.
The store is not the kind of airy boutique that might be found in one of the city’s tonier neighborhoods. Its aisles are narrow and the shelves run floor to ceiling, crammed with all manner of toys and games so her customers — dark-suited men, and women in long skirts and wigs — can pick out what they need.
You better redact the Torah and take out the war against Amalek, and all other fighting. We don’t want to promote violence.
Misguided efforts.
Borough Park toys stores are the best.
batman never killed anyone. Second, he only injures people in defense of others and to preserve order, so there is no bad message that is being sent.
I’d rather have a store like this that makes at least some real toys available to yiddeshe yinglach than have them denied all toys and be given a bunch of old pots and pans or seforim as their sole entertainment. Many chareidi kids are already denied a normal childhood so this store and others like it serve a very valuable function.
(Repy to #1 ) there’s a big difference to a war that needs to be faught and a spiderman shooting his stupid web everywhere to fight made up monsters. Kids should stay kids. A little kid randomly tried to hit someone in the supermarket and the guy asked what he was doing so the kid tells him he’s the hulk, its stupidity.
Its a very good toy store. They have real good stuff for good prices.
And in Chabad, the children are not allowed to have stuffed animals of non-kosher species.
What we need is a toy store that does not sell toys made by slave labor in China.
B”H such a store has its principles. I am very discriminating when buying toys, and clothes etc. that they shouldn’t have theme characters from yenem’s velt. I prefer that dolls should look like innoccent babies or little girls and shouldn’t be called Bratz or Barbie. I don’t want any superheroes or even Sponge Bob toys. I make exception to Bob the Builder and Winnie the Pooh, but, most others I stay away from.
toys are toys, this store is only about making money, which is fine, but the reality is that kids are happy with a spoon and some sand, most toys are a huge waste of money.
OK, a bit ridiculous, but better frum than fry. Batman and Superman were wholesome heroes that are sorely missed in this farkrumpt generation that idolizes beauty uber alles.
perhaps they can make uncle moishy and country yossi dolls.
and kivi and tuki too.
or the one eyed, one horned flying lukchen kugel eater.
I am sure that the New York Times will find a way to turn this around and to make it look awful.
my son was in the hospital a few months ago. some friends went to Double Play and ordered a toy to be delivered. The store was very busy they had no chance to do so. However at 11:30 pm the woman in the picture came runnig over to the hospital to deliver the gift just to make my son happy the next day. All i can say is WOW and THANK YOU