Israel – Rabbis Slam Court Ruling Against Religious School Discriminating Against Sephardim

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    Rabbi Shalom Elyashiv called for protest measures against the Supreme Court Israel – Rabbis vs. High Court: The leader of the Lithuanian ultra-Orthodox community, Rabbi Shalom Elyashiv called for protest measures against the Supreme Court following its ruling in the matter of ethnic separation in the Beit Yaakov religious school in Emanuel.

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    In a meeting with Deputy Education Minister MK Meir Porush, the rabbi said, “This is a dreadful ruling. This should prompt a great outcry.”

    The ultra-Orthodox public is furious with Judges Edmond Levy, Edna Arbel and Hanan Melcer, who fined the school and issued a contempt of court ruling against it and also subpoenaed the parents of Ashkenazi students who stopped sending their children to the school.

    Meanwhile, the Kol Hacharedi news hotline reported that the Slonimer rebbe ordered his followers who live in Emanuel not to abide by the court ruling, despite the threat of imprisonment.

    “I am willing to be the first to sit in prison over this issue,” he said, and compared it to the situation in which “Jews sat in Russian prisons over their children’s education.”

    He further declared his intention to attend the session on the children’s parents slated to take place at the High Court at the end of the month.

    The High Court of Justice on Wednesday issued a contempt of court ruling against the Independent Education Center, which is responsible for operating ultra-Orthodox schools, due to its failure to force Ashkenazi students in the Beit Yaakov school for girls in Emmanuel to attend classes.

    By failing to do so, the court said, the Center “helped violate an order to remove any sign of discrimination which prevailed in the school.”

    The court ordered the Independent Education Center to pay NIS 5,000 (about $1,353) for each day it avoids implementing the verdict, (as was reported here on VIN News).

    The judges also ruled that the parent of each Ashkenazi student who has stopped showing up for classes after the verdict would be subpoenaed to a court hearing at the end of April, where they would be required to explain their actions and might be accused of contempt of court – a move which may lead to arrests or fines. The parents will also be required to explain where their daughters have been studying since their strike began.


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    77 Comments
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    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    go israel go. Stop the racism now.

    Moshe
    Moshe
    13 years ago

    That terrible YU established an honored sefardi program at it college That is how it should br

    Havdalah
    Havdalah
    13 years ago

    Havdalah is NOT racism! It is FUNDAMENTAL to maintain and keep ones own MINHAGIM and NOT allow outside influences to corrupt. One should NEVER be forced to send their children to a school they feel is opposed to their values or beliefs which would damage their childrens developement. May we be blessed to merit the Posek Gadol Rav Shalom Elyashiv Shlita live to a hundred and twenty!

    medinah
    medinah
    13 years ago

    Israel is where religious Jews are discriminated against time and time, over and over. But since the discrimination is all in the name of openness and cultural inclusion the discrimination is deemed acceptable by modern society.

    censure
    censure
    13 years ago

    very soon the state will start to censure Torah passages which they deem unoffensive and unacceptable for a culturally enlightened zionist state. And they will do this all in the name of ending discrimination. lehavdil

    I dont get this, The Ashkenazi yeshiva is against Sefaradi kids?
    I dont get this, The Ashkenazi yeshiva is against Sefaradi kids?
    13 years ago

    Is this what is going on? I dont understand? can someone explain to me please. The Ashkenaz gedolim are not allowing sefaradi girls in their Yeshiva?
    if that is true, who needs Ahmadinejad?

    chief doofis
    chief doofis
    13 years ago

    Small wonder why our so called “Gedolim” aren’t respected outside their small circles. Perhaps R’ Eliashiv, when he opens his Rambam, will remember that the Rambam, the Ramban, The Ibn Ezra, Radak, the Mechaber, Kaf Hachayim, the RIF, nearly all of the Gaonim, etc., etc., were S’faradim (or Eda Hamizrach).

    Every single Reform, Conservative, Haskala, etc., etc., were and are Ashkenazim.

    The Second Churban was attributed to Sinat Chinam. What do they call this type of racism and hatred?

    wow
    wow
    13 years ago

    I don’t believe this is the whole story. I cant believe that these Gedolim would say such a thing especially considering the influence that Sephardim have had on our religion.
    On the other hand this school is repulsive. Id be amused to see where those rabbis would be today without the Sephardim. No Rambam, no Shulchan Aruch. Why don’t they ban every Sephardi Sefer out there-see where it gets them.

    Anon
    Anon
    13 years ago

    This has a been a long time in the coming. I have many friends of the family that have been discriminated against disgustingly in Israel repeatedly in all ages and genders of the charedi school system. Note that these people I am acquainted with are not tolerable in the religious level, as most of those that have been rejected are sons and daughters of rabbis, and the children religious in their own right.

    I was pretty close to a rabbi that had moved to jerusalem to teach in a yeshiva there, although his little kids, innocent and good kids were rejected from all the schools, forcing him to move back 2 weeks later.
    Or the 4th grade girl that got expelled bec. she was accused wrongfully of doing something wrong and even admitted later by the school with just an invitation for her to come back and no apology.

    The outrage against this law is nonsense. The few Sfardim that are accepted to the yeshivas are known to be the top in their school. It shouldn’t have come to these measures taken by the Supreme Court to give these terrible rabbis (oh, there’s a lot more stories I’m not going to say) an initiative to finally Sfardim in open like they do for Ashkenazim.

    NS
    NS
    13 years ago

    I totally agree with the court ruling. My “black-hat” cousin in Israel had to adopt an ashkenazic last name to get his kids into an ashkenazic yeshiva…How pitiful.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    I bet there’s more to this story than just “discrimination” based on sefardi minhagim. I still don’t understand why, if Sefardim feel so discriminated against in ashkenazi yeshivos and schools, they don’t start their own.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    To all the Ashkenazim here denying racism, my question is… Are you Sephardi? Do you know how it feels to be made as a second class when you are Jewish? Although you are really the ones that came from Europe, had to resurrect your own beliefs, because decades ago you guys had no clue of nusach or anything, you looked as similar as any other European. My point is, Congrats to Israel for admitting an issue that Ashkenazim like to cover under a rug. Ashkenazim you have a lot to learn from our culture, instead of trying to steal little things here and there.

    Just Thinking
    Just Thinking
    13 years ago

    The different Ashkenazi Jews have different customs as well. Do German, Polish and Russian Jews have the same Havara? No. EAch have their own minhagim as well. I can’t see why we need a different school for each custom. In my School we learned the customs of the different communities and no one seemed to mind it.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Aside from my personal feeling that the decision to keep Sefardic girls out of these schools is pure discrimination, I can understand that if the school was a purely private institution, with no outside funding, operating for profit in a democratic capitalistic society, it could pretty much legally do or get away with what it wants. But here are the facts. Fact #1 . This school and the entire system it operates under receive funding from the state. The state has rules about how its taxpayers dollars can be spent, and institutionalizing discrimination is a red line. If you don’t want to abide, OK. Don’t take public money. Fact #2 . The Bais Yaakov system in Israel has donors around the world. some of these are not chareidi, and some of these aren’t frum. Have each and every one of these donors been fully informed of the discriminatory policy applied here? Until this is so, it is deceitful to use the donors money to perpetuate something some of them would likely be disgusted by and never support.

    Finally, according to the story, Rav Elyashiv said the ruling was dreadful. I didn’t hear him say the Court had no right to enforce the law over a state funded school.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    It’s plain as day to see that this is not the whole story and to proove the point is that the slonimer rebbe is one of the greatest mechanchim of our day and that the chasidim and litvaks would agree on the same thing in Israel is telling of a different story when was the last time they agreed on anything specely schools elah my muz zien that somthings up and we are just getting a one sided slam storey

    charliehall
    charliehall
    13 years ago

    Justice Levy is reportedly shomer Shabat. It is depressing that it takes a Supreme Court order to enforce a Torah principle.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Are we really so weak in our minhagim or are our schools so poor that we need separate schools? Learning minhagim doesn’t force you to observe them. This separatism breeds more sinas chinam among fum Yidden. We talk about how we value all minhagim and all Jews yet there are those who take the sad attiude that I love all yidden but “not in my backyard.” This time of sefira is precisely when we need to be very careful about how we view and treat our fellow Jews.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    The problem is that it is very hard to do brainwashing in an open society. That is why strict separation from all other people is needed if the brainwashing is to be successful. All cults know this and have special separate compunds for their members.

    SimchaB
    SimchaB
    13 years ago

    It is very likely that R’ Elyashiv is unaware of the rampant discrimination against Sefardim in Israel. I assume he is protesting against the courts interfering with Chareidi education. He might even be unaware of the extent of the discrimination in this case or perhaps these girls are on a different religious level. Otherwise I would have to repeat the words of R’ Nachman of Breslov “A Tzadik can make a mistake, and just because he erred doesn’t mean he is no longer a tzadik”!

    stop the madness
    stop the madness
    13 years ago

    Unfortunately, it’s not just Ashkenazim that discriminate. I have heard of a few Bucharians not accepted into Sefardi yeshivot in Brooklyn due to not being Syrian enough. The root of the evil is the existence of separate communities within Jewish people. There should only be one Jewish community in each geographic location. Yeshivos and chasidishe rebbes should teach their unique derech avoda without forming any exclusive community around them – thus without locking any Jew out of our Torah inheritance.

    Syrian from Brooklyn
    Syrian from Brooklyn
    13 years ago

    This is why when משיח comes there will be so much room for us Americans to move to Israel
    since we (syrians & Ashkenazm) don’t fight each other in Brooklyn
    It’s scary to see what happens to all these horrible racist Jews in a land where people should be holy

    MS
    MS
    13 years ago

    There is a lot of ignorance here. The reason for keeping the Sephardim out has NOTHING to do with different minhagim. The askanim have explained the reason: Sephardim come from a different culture, they are not as frum as Ashkenazim, and that is why they have to be kept out and are not even allowed to play with Ashkenazi kids. This is the reason given by the principal of the school.

    izzy
    izzy
    13 years ago

    this is 100% racism and if they don’t like the court ruling stop taking money from the government

    David
    David
    13 years ago

    This has been going on in Israel since 48. There was rampant discrimination in the work force and it has gotten somewhat better.
    The Ashkenazi elite didn’t want the Sephardim in their schools since they viewed them as simple and somewhat ignorant.
    This is horrible.
    When R. Elyashiv WORKED FOR THE STATE OF ISRAEL (as a dayyan) he sat on a Beis Din with R. Ovadiah Yosef. I wonder what he thought of having to share his piskei din with a sephardi then?

    JS
    JS
    13 years ago

    The Lithuanian Yeshiva world leaders are wrong to discriminate aganist Safardim (there is no other description for their action) and to fight the court ruling. They desire to protect themselves by their attemp at segeration. However, these people should be more confident in how they raise their childern, be less fearful of other religious Jews and find better ways to secure the frumkite of their childern (then segerating them from Safardim). In Reality, the actual result of what they are doing is to create division and needless hatred among our Jewish Nation. We all loose in this very sad, very strange situation. It is a shameful story for those of us in the observant community. Have we learned nothing from History?

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    I don’t think you can rely on anything that is quoted in the name of Rav Elyashiv anymore. I shudder at the thought that this is true.

    I just HOPE
    I just HOPE
    13 years ago

    Kol Yisroel Areivim

    I just hope the Nissim, Sutton, Nesser, Sitt, Sasson, Safdeye, Adjimi, Mizrahi
    Harary, Cabasso, Issako , Rahel, Saff, Esses, Salem, Beyda, Assoulin, Betesh
    FAMILIES send all those Ashkenazi shnorers PACKING empty handed.

    They support and maintain Torah institutions regardless of county of Origin.
    In a Big Way-Hope they learn $$$ talks, BS walks

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    In the Galut the Goyim discriminate against us, but in Israel we discriminate against ourselves. This school is completely ridiculous and there is no legitimate reason fro what they’re doing. Jews should not be discriminating against other Jews.

    Careful
    Careful
    13 years ago

    The Sepharadim are discriminated against like crazy. While it is true that they are not always as frum, they are also not educated. Sometimes frum is synonymous with “machmir” which is a giant fallacy. I wonder what would be said about Hillel if he lived today.

    The “elite” Ashkenazim who built the State of Israel never wanted the Sepharadim to integrate. No big wonder what was done to the Yemenite children. See Rabbi Meir Kahane’s book – Uncomfortable Questions for Comfortable Jews to understand what the sorry state of Sepharadim was from back then.

    If in fact, the psak of R’ Elyashiv is as mentioned above, it is quite interesting. While I cannot dare argue or criticize, I remind everyone that the Rabbis are often misinformed by people who have agendas – the Lipa concert comes to mind, as was clearly explained by R’ Shmuel Kamentzky at the time.

    Either way, be careful what is said about Rabbis, especially publicly. Even if they are blatantly wrong, we need to respect them.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    I’m REALLY glad to see that the majority of the commentors here are seeing the racism and bigotry for what it is. Jews have been persecuted and discriminated against enough by other nations, we don’t need to do this to ourselves. Major kudos to the High Court, I hope they are successfully able to enforce their ruling.

    Yakoov Aveinu
    Yakoov Aveinu
    13 years ago

    Had Twelve sons by FOUR DIFFERENT mothers
    They didn’t all turnout Polish or Lithuanian or Ukrainian

    David
    David
    13 years ago

    We should only be so careful as to which Ashkenazim we allow into yeshivos.

    Why is R. Ovadiah’s daas torah any less than R. Elyashiv? Because he is sephardi? That is ridiculous and circular. R. Ovadiah has far more mastery of torah than any Ashkenazi gadol alive today and R. Elyashiv knows it.

    For some reason the sephardim still care what R. Elyashiv says when it contradicts their own daas torah. Its about time that they realized that the Ashkenazim are out to get them and are standing up to it.

    We are mechuyav to listen. To R. Ovadiah.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    What is HASHEM saying about his children???

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    All of you out there sound like a bunch of chickens clucking and making no sense. Rav elyashiv is not advocating discrimination of Sephardim and ashkanazim. He is deeply disturbed by the states holding chinuch atzmai responsible for what the parents are independently doing. The secular courts would never flex their muscles the way they are with a charedi institution, if it was chiloni. He is upset with the secular courts injustice!!!

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    A racist, by any other name ,is still despicable .

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Reply to # 54 . Not only ignored, he should be condemned .

    Shlomo
    Shlomo
    13 years ago

    Also, these Sephardim do not accept Rav Elyashiv’s daas Torah, or that of R. Kanievsky. They have their own rabbonim. How can we allow their children to be with the Ashkenazim who accept R. Elyashiv. Why should our children be put in a position to be influenced in a bad way, so that they know longer respect Maran’s daas torah?

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Amazing how all the posters here are so ignorant of the story.Any sephardi girl who accepted the ashkenazi school’s standards of frumkeit was accepted,you can even confirm this in the origanal story in ynet.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    I dont believe for one minute that Rav Elyahiv said this. Nor is it relevant to anyone unless he is their personal Rov and was asked a shailoh. He was not appointed the head of ‘Sanhedrin’ by anoyone.

    This schooll gets govt. money and money from Chinuch Atzmoi. The town does not have the resources for different schools for Litvish, Sephardim, Chassidish, Chardalim etc. If they want money from the Govt., they have to follow rules set by the govt. They cant take the govt.’s money, which is taxpayer money paid also by sephardim, and then try to run their own independent show and play games with people. If they want their separate school let them do it with their own funds/

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    13 years ago

    Its so funny becase in the states the sepharadim and the ashkenazim get along beautifully (same yeshivot, kollelim, work force, etc.) but in Israel they cant get along. Maybe because in the states we have the goyim hating us,so a jew is a jew- FINISHED! I hope klal Yisraelwill be able to love one another on their own . Hashem Ya’azor!

    Dib Watcher
    Dib Watcher
    13 years ago

    What are all these Ashkenazim yeshivot gonna do when the Mashiach turns out to be a Sephardi? Not let his kids in yeshiva?