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Animosity towards the Hasidic community in Rockland is nothing new

I am writing this post on behalf of myself. Not on behalf of the Jewish Federation and Foundation Of Rockland County, simply for myself. I have surveyed the response to how members of our community are dealing with our current health crisis and I am worried.

To claim there is animosity towards the Hasidic community in Rockland is nothing new. But the volume and severity of the threats they are receiving is something we have not seen before. There are countless news reports of people continuing to gather and not social distancing. Church services, beach parties, golf outings, biker funerals and the like have all been going on. Synagogues and Mikvehs have been closed for weeks, yet the Hasidim bear the brunt of the blame for spreading the virus. To pretend that some in the Hasidic community are not not social distancing would be a lie. To pretend that all of them are guilty would be an even greater lie. Because many of them dress similarly and have similar hairstyles, it is easy to view one of them as all of them. But we cannot allow the few to define the many.

As COVID-19 cases rise, we also see a rise in paranoia over who’s to blame. But hate is just as contagious as the virus. Day after day threats against the Hasidim pile up online. These are not anonymous threats on underground message boards. These are on Facebook groups with their name and the picture presented proudly next to their comments, saying police need to round them up and the fire department should turn their hoses on their gatherings. Perhaps I’m showing my age, but I remember a time when our country routinely applied these techniques to African Americans and Peace Protests. We do not want to return to such a time.

I am the son of Holocaust survivors. I’ve heard stories my entire life of where hate can lead. Such a comparison may seem hyperbolic, but when there’s literal talk of rounding up the Jews and keeping them in containment zones I can’t help but worry how far people will go.

With Easter, Passover, and Ramadan coming up, I hope we all take the time to reflect on what our actions were and what they will be. We will not overcome this health crisis by finger-pointing and calling for violence. We cannot allow ourselves to be overly skeptical of one group while overly sympathetic to another.

Please be considerate of one another. Please stay safe. And please stay sane.

Peace & Love

Steve Gold

About the Author
Steve Gold is President of the Jewish Federation and Foundation of Rockland County. He is an influential and client-focused sales leader with 20+ years of experience leading organizations in achieving revenue transformation, aggressive growth, increased profitability, and brand elevation. Adept at building, training and motivating teams and maintaining a keen pulse on market trends, opportunities, and innovation to deliver effective results. Fosters a positive and performance-based culture that increases employee engagement, production, and retention. Creates and executes strategies to build key opportunities, sales competencies, and market share. Captures major accounts and develops long-term, consultative client relationships, collaborating across functions and levels to drive optimal product development, marketing, and customer service. Consistently monitors and analyzes metrics to glean insights and proactively address challenges.
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