Just to be clear, Charedi leaders are just as appalled at this kind of behavior as I am, if not more so. Rav Elyashiv famously forced one Charedi gilrs school to adjust their discriminatory policies against Sephardim a few years ago. And Rav Steniman scolded an official from another Charedi school who came to him for a blessing in his goal of barring Sephardim from his school.
I will never forget his words to that man. ‘Gavah’ (conceit) he shouted at him. He repeated it several times after each attempt by that school official to explain why he thought he was right to exclude them. His request was correctly interpreted by Rav Shetinman as naked prejudice. Claims about a a lower level of observance were dismissed by Rav Shteinman as an excuse and nothing more.
It seem that no matter what their own respected leadership says about it, it keeps falling on deaf ears.
Why would I want to respect a group of people that is so racist? I would not. Knowing nothing else about them, I would hate them too. Who wouldn’t hate a group of racists?!
The question is why? Why the disconnect between Charedi leaders and their constituents on this matter? I don’t know the answer. But I suspect it has a lot to do with their insular ways and the fear of ‘contamination’ by the outside world.
First of all the very idea of not accepting a student from a home that is not as religious as the standard of the school is in itself wrong-headed. Rav Shteinman’s dismissal of such claims indicates that he would concur. Exclusion is not what Judaism is about. And yet it is perhaps the thing most responsible for the divisiveness among us. Instead of teaching tolerance and acceptance of people slightly different an ‘us and them’ mentality is taught. What is constantly hammered into the minds of Charedi young people is how much better they are than anyone else since they are the true bearers of the Mesorah and its Torah ideals. Every other Hashkafa is at best Krum – not quite right albeit not quite heretical either. This creates a condescending attitude to not only secular Jews but even to religious Jews that are not exactly like themselves
How do I know? Because I have heard the lectures from some of the teachers I had. There is a hierarchy taught to young students whereby the highest level of Jew is the Charedi Jew. They are the top of the totem pole. Other Jews may be fine people, but they are lesser Jews in the eyes of God. It is only the few and the proud Charedim that are on the right track.
With this as their base mentality – is it any wonder that they don’t want to be contaminated by ‘lesser Jews’? If a school accepts a student from less observant home The fear is that their students will be unduly influenced from their lofty goals. And overall lesser observance by their students will result, if not worse. This is an ideal of many schools. And it is nonsense. If you are Charedi and your child goes OTD, it will not be because there is a few students in the school that are not from Charedi homes.
The same holds true about their fear of Sephardim. They see their customs to be of lesser value and their culture as inferior to that of their own. And they do not want their children to be ‘contaminated’ by them.
That – my friends – is pure unadulterated racism. Rav Elayshiv Knew that. And Rav Shteinman knows that. The question is when will their constituents know it? Seems like they never will.
