In
the last two months, the avalanche of stories about sexual abuse and
harassment has touched virtually every sector of American society. The
revelations about deeply troubling behavior on the part of politicians,
journalists and figures in the entertainment world have transfixed the
country. As more victims come forward to tell their stories, the
consequences have gone beyond the disgrace of some prominent
individuals, the end of careers and, in Alabama, a surprising election
result. What began with a shocking story about movie mogul Harvey
Weinstein has led to what may well be a crucial turning point in the way
sexual misconduct is viewed.
We are no longer in an era in which
all forms of abuse—be it violent crime, abuse of minors as well as
unwanted physical touching, abusive verbal comments and forms of
pressure—that might have once been viewed as permissible if unpleasant
behavior can be ignored or dismissed.
Under these circumstances, it is only to be expected that some of these stories would involve the Jewish community. This week’s JNS feature by Elizabeth Kratz
concerning alleged abuse carried out by a since-retired United
Synagogue Youth (USY) director follows the same pattern of the rest of
the #metoo scandals. A powerful person used his position to carry out
sexual abuse, in this case, against minors. The victims felt unable to
step forward at the time, both because of the shame they were made to
feel by the predator and also because they felt nobody in a position to
do something about it would listen. Organizations that should have been
on guard against abuse were, like the rest of society, not listening or
indifferent about what was going on under their noses.
The
Conservative movement responsible for the USY program in question was
not alone in this respect as such scandals have, in one form or another,
touched other Jewish denominations. To its credit, the United Synagogue
of Conservative Judaism appears now to have taken appropriate action,
not only to sever any ties with alleged abusers, but also to ensure, as
much as it is possible, that similar misconduct doesn’t recur.
This
story is so similar to numerous other sex scandals that many readers
who have become so accustomed to such discussions may have lost their
ability to be shocked by the topic. But it is also true that there will
be some in the Jewish world who, while eagerly consuming accounts of the
various stories about celebrities who have been exposed as abusers,
don’t want accounts of misconduct within their own community to be
published.
The impulse to regard journalism about bad behavior by
Jews—especially those connected to vital Jewish organizations—that are
published in the Jewish press as an unnecessary airing of dirty laundry
is, in one sense, understandable. Such stories are seen as something
that ought to be kept in the family and away from the view of outsiders
who might use them to denigrate Jews or harm Jewish institutions. There
will always be a tendency to regard any accounts that portray Jewish
life in an unflattering context as betrayals of tribal loyalty if they
come from Jewish sources.
But as it should have already become
clear as society comes to grip with the pervasive nature of sexual
harassment, keeping quiet does nobody any good. The mindset that
regarded the reporting of such crimes and misbehavior as bad form or
disreputable scandal mongering, or what Jewish tradition regards as
“lashon hara,” is a big part of the problem that enabled the abusers to
get away with their crimes for so long. When The New York Jewish Week
reported on the abuse going on at the Orthodox movement’s NCSY in 2000,
it was subjected to a storm of criticism from those who thought this
wasn’t the sort of thing Jewish publications should publish. But it is
exactly that kind of reporting that is a necessary precondition for
action that will prevent future crimes of this nature.
While
there may still be some Jewish readers who prefer to avert their eyes
from coverage of these issues like this week’s JNS story or even to
criticize us for publishing it, responsible Jewish journalists cannot be
part of a conspiracy of silence about this or any other subject that
directly affects the welfare of the community. It is the duty of JNS and
every other reputable outlet of Jewish journalism to responsibly report
the facts about sexual misconduct. That obligation is even more
important when the safety of children is at stake.
The days when
the predators could count on the silence of the Jewish world to protect
them from the consequences of their crimes should be over. Let’s be sure
never again to let a desire to avoid negative coverage of our own
community lead us to keep quiet about criminal acts. Never again should
such sentiments serve as an excuse for the sort of coverups that are
part of the reason why it took so long for us to learn the awful truth
about this subject.
TOGETHER WE WILL - BREAK THE BACKS OF EVERY RABBI, YESHIVA AND ORGANIZATION THAT COVERED UP CHILD SEX ABUSE FOR A GENERATION!
Australia Gripped by Decades of Sexual Abuse of Children, Panel Finds
SYDNEY,
Australia — A royal commission investigating the sexual abuse of
children in Australia found Friday that the nation was gripped by an
epidemic dating back decades, with tens of thousands of children
sexually abused in schools, religious organizations and other
institutions.
The
commission, the highest form of investigation in Australia, urged the
government to consider and respond to its conclusions and 189
recommendations, among them the establishment of a new National Office
for Child Safety and the adoption of laws to address the failure to
protect children.
“Tens of thousands of children have been sexually abused in many Australian institutions,” the commission’s report
said. “We will never know the true number. Whatever the number, it is a
national tragedy, perpetrated over generations within many of our most
trusted institutions.”
The
commission’s chairman, Justice Peter McClellan, said that the panel
heard from more than 1,000 witnesses over nearly 15 months in
discovering the magnitude of the abuse.
“Across
many decades many institutions failed our children,” Justice McClellan
said at the commission’s final hearing, on Thursday. “Our child
protection, criminal and civil justice systems let them down.”
Australia
created the commission in 2012 to investigate decades of sexual abuse
in religious institutions, schools and other establishments — the only
country in the world so far to initiate such a sweeping government-led
inquiry. More than 4,000 institutions have been implicated in abuse
allegations, the commission found.
Australian government investigators found 4,444
victims of abuse and at least 1,880 suspected abusers from 1980 to
2015, most of them Catholic priests and religious brothers.
Francis
Sullivan, the Roman Catholic Church’s point person in dealing with the
crisis, acknowledged that the revelations had “shocked the nation” and
“revealed a deep, deep, weeping wound.”
The
inquiry, costing 500 million Australian dollars, or $383 million, was
unmatched in its scope in examining a scandal that has shaken the Roman
Catholic hierarchy worldwide.
Advocates on Friday outside Government House in Canberra.Credit
Lukas Coch/European Pressphoto Agency
The
most damaging revelations centered on scandals in towns like Ballarat,
the hometown of Cardinal George Pell, who this year became the
highest-ranking Roman Catholic prelate to be formally charged with sexual offenses.
In
Ballarat, a police officer investigated a pedophile ring at local
Catholic schools and said up to 30 victims had since committed suicide.
The charges brought in June against Cardinal Pell, one of Pope Francis’ top advisers, followed years of criticism that he had at best overlooked, and at worst covered up, the widespread abuse of children by clergymen in Australia.
Former
Prime Minister Julia Gillard, who had called for the establishment of
the royal commission, said that previous efforts to conduct such an
inquiry were resisted, despite efforts by whistle-blowers to expose the
abuses.
“Increasingly
as more and more survivors came forward, the question became, how do we
respond to this?” she said. “There were a number of factors to consider
that troubled me quite deeply."
She
said that in formulating the inquiry, she found that previous such
efforts hadn’t given survivors the sense of healing or closure they
sought.
“I
knew that it would be difficult to get it right and I was very
concerned that if we created an inquiry that didn’t work well, it would
end up retraumatizing survivors,” Ms. Gillard said.
She
decided that even in the face of many of the risks, giving survivors
the respect and dignity that came with having a formal, wide-ranging
inquiry in which they could report what had happened to them was more
important.
Ultimately,
Australians have been shocked and appalled by the range of the abuse
that has been brought to light, and the systematic nature of the
cover-ups.
“It
has already changed the nation,” Ms. Gillard said. “Never again can we
be naïve about the depth and breadth of this problem.”
In August, the royal commission recommended a sweep of legislative and policy changes,
one of which would require priests who hear about sexual abuse in the
confessional to report it to the authorities, alarming church officials
since confidentiality is integral to the ritual.
This volume discusses what we learned during our five-year inquiry
about institutional responses to child sexual abuse in religious
institutions. It outlines the nature and extent of the abuse, its
impacts, and survivors’ experiences of disclosing it. It examines common
failures in institutional responses, and draws out factors that may
have contributed to the occurrence of abuse and to inadequate responses.
It makes recommendations to prevent child sexual abuse from occurring
in religious institutions and, where it does occur, to ensure that
responses are appropriate and effective.
Children and their wellbeing, safety and protection have been at the
centre of our inquiry. Our Terms of Reference recognise that all
children deserve a safe and happy childhood and that Australia has
international obligations to protect children from sexual and other
forms of abuse.
We have examined a broad range of institutions – from schools to
Scouts, from the YMCA to sporting and dance clubs, from Defence training
establishments to a range of out-of-home care services. We have
considered institutions managed by federal, state and territory
governments as well as non-government organisations. It is clear that
child sexual abuse has occurred in a broad range of institutional
contexts across Australia, and over many decades. However, we heard more
allegations of child sexual abuse in relation to institutions managed
by religious organisations than any other management type.
More than 4,000 survivors told us in private sessions that they were
sexually abused as children in religious institutions.
The abuse
occurred in religious schools, orphanages and missions, churches,
presbyteries and rectories, confessionals, and various other settings.
In private sessions we heard about child sexual abuse occurring in 1,691
different religious institutions. The sexual abuse took many forms,
including rape. It was often accompanied by physical or emotional abuse.
Most victims were aged between 10 and 14 years when the abuse first
started. We heard about perpetrators including priests, religious
brothers and sisters, ministers, church elders, teachers in religious
schools, workers in residential institutions, youth group leaders and
others.
We conducted 30 case studies on religious institutions. They revealed
that many religious leaders knew of allegations of child sexual abuse
yet failed to take effective action. Some ignored allegations and did
not respond at all. Some treated alleged perpetrators leniently and
failed to address the obvious risks they posed to children. Some
concealed abuse and shielded perpetrators from accountability.
Institutional reputations and individual perpetrators were prioritised
over the needs of victims and their families.
Religious leaders and institutions across Australia have acknowledged
that children suffered sexual abuse while in their care. Many have also
accepted that their responses to this abuse were inadequate. These
failures are not confined to religious institutions. However, the
failures of religious institutions are particularly troubling because
these institutions have played, and continue to play, an integral and
unique role in the lives of many children. They have also been key
providers of education, health and social welfare services to children
in Australia for many years. They have been among the most respected
institutions in our society. The perpetrators of child sexual abuse in
religious institutions were, in many cases, people that children and
parents trusted the most and suspected the least.
Many people who experience child sexual abuse have the course of
their lives altered forever. Many of the survivors we heard from
continue to experience the ongoing impacts. For some, these impacts have
been profound. They include a devastating loss of religious faith and
loss of trust in the religious organisation that was once a fundamental
part of their life. The impacts have rippled out to affect their
parents, siblings, partners, children and, in some cases, entire
communities. Some victims have not survived the abuse, having since
taken their own lives.
It would be a mistake to regard this child sexual abuse as
historical; as something we no longer need to be concerned about. While
much of the abuse we heard about in religious institutions occurred
before 1990, long delays in victims disclosing abuse mean that an
accurate contemporary understanding of the problem is not possible. Some
of the abuse we heard about was recent. More than 200 survivors told us
they had experienced child sexual abuse in a religious institution
since 1990. We have no way of knowing how many others may have had
similar experiences.
However, it would also be wrong to say that nothing has changed. In
some religious institutions there has been progress during the past two
decades. Some of the religious institutions examined in our case studies
told us about their child protection reforms. Others remained reluctant
to accept the need for significant internal changes.
We have developed a comprehensive set of recommendations aimed at
making religious institutions safer for children. Many of the
recommendations apply to all religious institutions in Australia. Some
are specific to particular religious institutions. In some cases, the
recommendations are also relevant to the international leadership of
religious organisations.
The recommendations focus on factors that we identified as
contributing to the occurrence of child sexual abuse in religious
institutions and to inadequate institutional responses. Some relate to
governance, internal culture and underlying theological and scriptural
beliefs and practices. We have examined these matters to the extent that
they have affected – and may continue to affect – the vulnerability of
children to abuse, and the likelihood of religious institutions
responding poorly when abuse occurs. Religious leaders in Australia have
recognised the importance of our role in providing recommendations on
such matters.
While positive reforms are underway in some religious institutions,
there is still much progress to be made before the community can be
confident that all religious institutions in Australia are as safe as
possible for children.
Trump Warns That Dumping Roy Moore Could Start a Dangerous Trend of Believing Women
WASHINGTON (The Borowitz
Report)—Breaking his
silence on Alabama’s embattled Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate,
Donald Trump warned on Wednesday that dumping Roy Moore could start a
“dangerous trend” of believing women.
“I think we need to be very, very careful here,” Trump told reporters.
“This is not just about Roy Moore. This is about our country deciding
that we are going to start believing women, something that we have never
done before.
“This is a very dangerous road we’re heading down,” he said.
Trump cautioned that, if instituted, a new practice of believing women
would “totally destroy” the system that the country already has in
place. “For years we’ve had a system of believing men,” he said. “It’s
worked very well. It’s done a great job.”
He said that he was considering a number of measures to stem the tide of
women’s credibility, including an executive order banning women from
giving believable accounts to the press. “That’s something we’re looking
into,” he indicated.
Trump painted a doomsday
scenario of what might happen if the “very bad
trend” of believing women gained traction in the country. “If people
believe Roy Moore’s five accusers, what happens to a man who has, say,
about twenty accusers?” he asked. “I don’t like where this is going.”
Family
of Tzfat rabbi convicted of rape, sodomy, considers suing women who
complained for loss of home, lower standard of living.
Ezra Sheinberg, when his arrest was extended
The
family of Ezra Sheinberg is considering suing three women for damages
and slander after the women complained of rape and sodomy but their
complaints were not included in the final indictment, Israel Hayom reported.
Sheinberg was indicted in July 2015
for rape, sodomy, sexual assault, disrupting legal proceedings and
obtaining objects through fraud. However, a plea bargain reached later
left out both rape and sodomy.
Those close to the Sheinberg family told Israel Hayom that
just a few months after Sheinberg was arrested, three women filed civil
suits against him, claiming he raped them and demanding millions of
shekels in compensation.
"The ones who suffered most from this civil suit was the rabbi's family, who did nothing wrong," a relative told Israel Hayom.
"Immediately after the suits were filed, a lien was issued against the
family's home and every bank account which the rabbi was a signatory
for, including the family's bank account. This caused the family to
suffer severe financial distress."
"To this day, the family lives in a small rented apartment, and their
standard of life has dropped considerably due to the liens on their
bank account and home. Today, they manage to survive only thanks to the
financial support of their extended family.
"They're not interested in revenge, but the financial damage caused
to them is very significant, and they are seriously considering suing
those who caused this damage and demanding compensation for the
injustice caused them."
The world our children will inherit tomorrow is born in the schools we build today
On
Friday 8th December 2017, I spoke in a debate in the House of Lords on
Education. The debate was initiated by the Archbishop of Canterbury,
Justin Welby, and focused on the role of education in building a
flourishing and skilled society. I took the opportunity to talk about the contribution that faith schools
have made, and continue to make, to the education system and to wider
society, and especially about the values they give our children. Below
is a video and transcript of my remarks.
My
Lords. I am grateful to the most Rev Primate for initiating this debate
on a subject vital to the future flourishing of our children and
grandchildren. My Lords, allow me to speak personally as a Jew. Something about our
faith moves me greatly, and goes to the heart of this debate. At the
dawn of our people’s history, Moses assembled the Israelites on the
brink of the Exodus. He didn’t talk about the long walk to freedom. He didn’t speak about the
land flowing with milk and honey. Instead, repeatedly, he turned to the
far horizon of the future and spoke about the duty of parents to
educate their children. He did it again at the end of his life,
commanding: “You shall teach these things repeatedly to your children,
speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk on the way,
when you lie down and when you rise up. Why this obsession with education that has stayed with us from that day
to this? Because to defend a country you need an army. But to defend a
civilisation you need schools. You need education as the conversation
between the generations. Whatever the society, the culture or the faith, we need to teach our
children, and they theirs, what we aspire to and the ideals we were
bequeathed by those who came before us. We need to teach our children
the story of which we and they are a part, and we need to trust them to
go further than we did, when they come to write their own chapter. We make a grave mistake if we think of education only in terms of
knowledge and skills – what the American writer David Brooks calls the
resume virtues as opposed to the eulogy virtues. And this is not woolly idealism. It’s hard-headed pragmatism. Never has
the world changed so fast, and it’s getting faster each year. We have no
idea what patterns of employment will look like in 2, let alone 20
years from now, what skills will be valued, and which done instead by
artificially intelligent, preternaturally polite robots. We need to give our children an internalised moral Satellite Navigation
System so that they can find their way across the undiscovered country
called the future. We need to give them the strongest possible sense of
collective responsibility for the common good, because we don’t know who
will be the winners and losers in the lottery of the global economy and
we need to ensure its blessings are shared. There is too much “I” and
too little “We” in our culture and we need to teach our children to care
for others, especially those not like us. We work for all these things in our Jewish schools. We give our children
confidence in who they are, so that they can handle change without fear
and keep learning through a lifetime. We teach them not just to be
proud Jews, but proud to be English, British, defenders of democratic
freedom and active citizens helping those in need. Schools are about more than what we know and what we can do. They are
about who we are and what we must do to help others become what they
might be. The world our children will inherit tomorrow is born in the
schools we build today.
A New Push to Expand New York’s Childhood Sex Assault Law
Assemblywoman Linda B.
Rosenthal, a Democrat who represents Manhattan’s Upper West Side, is
part of an effort to raise the limits on when victims of child sex abuse
can sue.
Can the national outpouring of sexual abuse claims help move recalcitrant mountains in Albany?
For
11 years, activists and lawmakers in New York have tried and failed to
pass the Child Victims Act, which would expand the legal recourse
available to people who say they were sexually abused as children, who
now face some of the most restrictive laws in the country. As the
national conversation bursts with a reckoning over sexual misconduct,
activists hope that this year they will succeed and are advancing a new,
more aggressive strategy to pass the bill.
“Now is the time,” said Bridie Farrell, a competitive speed skater who was abused by an older teammate
and has been pushing the bill in Albany for years. “The people who are
speaking up are famous people, with fortunes and legal teams and PR
teams,” she said. And yet for years, she continued, “they were too
scared to talk. So how do you expect a child to do it?”
Under
New York State law, victims of childhood sexual abuse have until they
are 21 to sue the institution where the abuse took place, like a church
or a school, and until 23 to sue their attacker. Criminal charges, with
the exception of rape, must be filed before a survivor turns 23.
Activists say New York, along with a handful of other states like
Alabama and Michigan, has some of the least victim-friendly laws in the
country.
The
Child Victims Act would allow survivors to sue until they turn 50 and
let criminal charges be filed until they are 28. It would also create a
one-year window during which cases from any time could proceed in court.
Some
two dozen advocacy organizations and survivor groups are coordinating
their efforts this year with the twin goals of convincing Gov. Andrew M.
Cuomo to put the Child Victims Act in the budget and creating the
political space for it to succeed. A member of the coalition, Child USA, a nonprofit group led by Marci Hamilton, a legal expert in child sex abuse cases, has hired the strategic communications firm SKDKnickerbocker to coordinate the campaign. SKD has enjoyed a close relationship with Mr. Cuomo’s office, and oversaw the successful effort in 2011 to legalize gay marriage in the state.
Child
USA says that the law belongs in the governor’s budget because current
laws cost the state money. Some survivors of childhood sexual assault,
who may suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder or other difficulties
like addiction, often end up depending on state programs like Medicaid.
Child USA argues that the Child Victims Act would shift that financial
burden to the abusers and responsible institutions.
Last
year, the bill passed in the Assembly by a vote of 139-7, and Mr. Cuomo
offered his endorsement by introducing it as well. But the Senate
speaker, John J. Flanagan, a Republican, has declined to bring it up for
a vote in that chamber. A key piece of the proponents’ strategy will be
to aggressively target specific state senators, especially in
competitive suburban districts, with efforts like digital advertising to
get their support. Carl L. Marcellino and Elaine Phillips, Republicans
from Long Island who won narrow victories in recent elections, are two senators on their list, according to coalition representatives.
“I
think we realize now that they really need to be called out,” said
Stephen Jimenez, an abuse survivor who has been advocating for the bill
for more than 10 years.
“The question for us now is really blunt: Why
are you protecting predators?”
Mr. Flanagan did not return repeated calls seeking comment.
Those
pushing the legislation have met with Mr. Cuomo and his staff over the
past year and a half, and they say that communication continues.
“It
is outrageous that as a result of arcane laws, these victims have been
denied their day in court,” Rich Azzopardi, a spokesman for Mr. Cuomo
said in an email. “We are working with the advocates to determine the
most effective way to achieve these much needed reforms.”
The
measure, which has been spearheaded by the victim organization Safe
Horizon for over a decade, has faced consistent opposition from the
Catholic church and other groups that serve young people. Dennis Poust,
the director of communications for the New York State Catholic Conference,
said that while the state’s bishops support forward-looking legislation
to raise the statute of limitations, they opposed the window that might
open the church up to decades worth of claims.
Activists
say such a window is an important way to flush out predators who may
have evaded detection, who may even still have access to children, and
Linda B. Rosenthal, a Democrat from Manhattan and the bill’s sponsor in
the Assembly, called it a “moral responsibility” to allow victims the
chance to seek justice. But Mr. Poust said that dioceses in Minnesota and Delaware had filed for bankruptcy after a flood of sexual abuse claims.
“We
have to ensure that the church can continue to provide essential
services, be it charitable, educational or sacramental,” Mr. Poust said.
As
both sides gear up for the legislative session, the drum beat of
assault allegations seems to quicken every day. Time Magazine named “The Silence Breakers,” who have called out abuse, its person of the year.
“I’m
hopeful that because of revelation about widespread sexual abuse, the
dam of resistance has been broken — there are no more sacred cows,” Ms.
Rosenthal said. “If this isn’t the moment,” she continued, “then we’re
doomed.”
TOGETHER WE WILL - BREAK THE BACKS OF EVERY RABBI, YESHIVA AND ORGANIZATION THAT COVERED UP CHILD SEX ABUSE FOR A GENERATION!
Women sexually abused by senior rabbi speak out for first time
Complainants against Safed
Rabbi Ezra Sheinberg describe to Israel Hayom how he wielded his
influence to have them perform sexual acts • Sheinberg pleaded guilty to
eight counts of sexual offenses as part of a plea bargain inked in
July.
Safed Rabbi Ezra
Sheinberg
Add caption
|
Complainants against Safed Rabbi Ezra Sheinberg are speaking out for the first time.
Sheinberg, a prominent rabbi who previously
headed a Jewish community and a network of yeshivas in the northern
Israeli city pleaded guilty to eight counts of sexual offenses against
eight separate women who had turned to Sheinberg for spiritual guidance,
as part of a plea bargain signed in July.
Three of Sheinberg's victims spoke to
Israel Hayom about how he used his influence to demand they perform
sexual acts on themselves while speaking to him via video chat and later
that they meet with him privately.
"The meetings slowly became more physical.
In his home and at my home, when my husband was away," one of the
victims said. "A medical issue that I had in my body went away, and I
was convinced it was due to the 'treatments' he performed on me. It
created a sort of dependency on my part. Every time, he would think of a
new sickness I had, and I believed the illnesses went away because of
him. He said that if I said anything about the 'relaxation treatments,'
the blessing would not take effect, and something terrible would happen
to my husband or my kids."
Another victim said, "The treatments became
more and more humiliating and difficult. I wanted my treatment to be
over already. He asked if I would agree to 'receive his spiritual
abundance inside my mouth.' He asked me to think of him when I was with
my husband. When I asked him how that could be, because he is a
righteous man, his answer was, 'I enjoy giving abundance.' He used to
say that when he heals, he has no inhibitions. I believed it."
The third complainant described her experience to Israel Hayom as follows:
"When he asked me to strip and put on a
blindfold, I refused at first. ... I was ashamed of myself – how
irresponsible of me to doubt him. No one knew I was going to him, and he
emphasized that the blessing would only take effect if it was hidden
from view. One day, he told me, 'Let's do a reverse relaxation. You
touch me in the same spots on my body.' He said that if he gives me
'abundance,' then the treatment will end. I told myself; let him do what
he needs to do, just so the agony would end. In my body and soul, I
felt I was being raped, but I couldn't stop it.
"I would be crying uncontrollably. When I
asked to stop meeting with him, he gave me the sense that I had done
something wrong. I thought to myself, 'You go to a gynecologist and he
pokes you there, so he's also a type of doctor."
Sheinberg's attorney Menachem Rubinstein declined to comment.
Ultra-Orthodox singer tapes eyes shut to avoid seeing women dancing in audience
At Jerusalem concert for female-only crowd,
American-born Yonatan Razel takes drastic action to block the sight of
women boogieing in front of the stage
Ultra-Orthodox
singer Yonatan Razel covers his eyes with masking tape to avoid seeing
women dancing at the foot of the stage on December 3, 2017
An ultra-Orthodox singer covered his eyes with masking tape in
the middle of a concert for women only in order not to see audience
members who were dancing in front of the stage.
Yonatan Razel was playing his keyboard and singing at Jerusalem’s
International Conference Center on Sunday night when he put the tape
over his eyes during one song. Video of the incident was played on
Hadashot television news.
Razel is an American-born musician, and one of most popular ultra-Orthodox performers in Israel. He recently released his third album.
An organizer of the concert, which was part of a festival of
ultra-Orthodox music for women, said that Razel covered his eyes for a
few minutes.
Yonatan Razel, with masking tape over his eyes, at a Jerusalem concert for women on December 3, 2017
“The scene in which he is seen to be covering his eyes took place for
only a few minutes, when there were circles of women dancing at the
foot of the stage,” he told the Ynet news site. “It was his personal
decision, so as not to sit with his eyes open in front of the dancing
women. Then he removed the tape and continued the concert normally.”
The act was considered unusual, even among the ultra-Orthodox who
practice strict adherence to modesty laws. There have not been other
incidents of Haredi singers covering their eyes in this way in front of
the all-female crowd.
Galia Wolloch, president of Israeli women’s rights organization Na’amat, slammed the singer for his extreme behavior.
“How far will this ostensibly religious extremism go?” she wrote on
Facebook. “And who are the religious authorities who encourage this
bizarre behavior?”
A representative of Razel downplayed the incident.
“Razel wants to say that he has appeared regularly for years before
women and respects them, and his actions yesterday should not be given
any other significance,” he told the news site.
יונתן רזאל הופיע אמש בבנייני האומה עם כיסוי על העיניים - כדי לא לראות את הנשים בקהל. את הוידאו אגב צילמה אישה: ח.ע pic.twitter.com/BHV6lhe0hs
Lunatic Goes On Anti-Semitic Rampage At Jewish Nursing Home
By: UOJ --- SATIRE OF A JTA BULLETIN
Bronx, NY - A man shouting a Jewish slur attacked the resident of a New York City Jewish nursing home after trying to rob him.
The alleged attacker, Harav Hagadol Hatzadik, Hagaon, Pinchos Tumtum of Brooklyn, New York, was
allowed in the New Jewish Home in the Bronx on Shabbos koidesh afternoon after
telling the security guard he needed to use the bathroom after a bad cholent. (Mishpocho With The Asher Yatzer Rebbe)
But Tumtum entered the room of a resident, where he lit a marijuana
cigarette and trashed the room, according to the New York Post. He then
entered the room of an 84-year-old Jewish man and demanded his money
before hitting him with a fire extinguisher. He also shouted, “I’m going
to kill you, you mother f***ing secular Jew,” according to the report.
Benjamin Adroygonus, Tumtum's lawyer, said Tumtum was charged with robbery, burglary, a hate crime, assault,
criminal possession of a very little weapon and possession of marijuana, police told
WUOJ TV. Androygonus was preparing the "Kool-Aid" defense saying that nobody that gets out of an Agudah Convention can possibly have their sanity intact. "I will pursue this defense vigorously" said Androygonus. He gave out his cell phone for anyone else that was in attendance that will need legal assistance. He warned secular Jews particularly to be on the lookout for Agudah members that want to beat up secular Jews, and all Jews of a different outlook on Judaism than the Aguda rabbis.
The nursing home fired the security guard, he went back to being the Satmar Rebbe.
The victim reportedly spent Sunday, his birthday, with his family.
Rabbi Avi Shafran, Rabbi Chaim Dovid Zweibel, Rabbi Perlow were not available for comment, they were eating the leftovers from Thanksgiving.
TOGETHER WE WILL BUILD A COMMODE:
UOJ was available for comment - He said NO COMMENT!
Paedophile Priest told victim his crimes were an “old Jewish ritual”
Mauro
Inzoli, a Catholic Priest recently convicted of child sex offences,
claimed that his abhorrent crimes were merely an “old Jewish ritual”.
Inzoli, who was condemned by Pope Francis, as found guilty of eight
counts of sexual abuse of children aged 12 to 16 years old between 2004
and 2008. He molested children during confession, away on camps, and
even at hospital.
He told one victim that his actions “referred to a sort of ‘baptism
of the testicles’ which he said was a Jewish ritual found in the Old
Testament as a sign of affection between father and son”. None such
ritual exists in Jewish practice.
Inzoli was sentenced to five years in jail, and has been defrocked by
Pope Francis, meaning he will not be able to serve as a Priest in any
capacity. He was also ordered to pay damages to his victims.
Whilst this is not necessarily an antisemitic incident, the fact that
Inzoli used the Jewish religion as a way of targeting his victims is
utterly horrifying, and deserves remarking upon by Jewish sources.
In
the last two months, the avalanche of stories about sexual abuse and
harassment has touched virtually every sector of American society. The
revelations about deeply troubling behavior on the part of politicians,
journalists and figures in the entertainment world have transfixed the
country. As more victims come forward to tell their stories, the
consequences have gone beyond the disgrace of some prominent
individuals, the end of careers and, in Alabama, a surprising election
result. What began with a shocking story about movie mogul Harvey
Weinstein has led to what may well be a crucial turning point in the way
sexual misconduct is viewed. 
