(Community Matters) reading this article about Ultra-Orthodox Israeli protests reminds me I intended to write more about my observations and any conclusions from my travel through Israel.
I don’t have a perspective on this particular issue. What I’ve heard and experienced more broadly which might share insight: 1) there is a social hierarchy subscribed to by some Israelis which places the Ashkenazi ahead of the Sephardic. And, 2) tensions between the deeply religious and secular Israelis continue to rise.
Because the deeply religious (ultra-orthodox) men do not work – they spend all day studying the Torah, – they don’t have much income (only that of their wives, mostly in low paying jobs) and don’t pay taxes. As (I’m told) most deeply-religious families have heaps of kids (I kept hearing 6, 9, 10, even 15 children each family), the State of Israel subsidizes these families. And, while this segment of Israeli society is the most politically conservative, often advocating military action, their children are exempt from compulsory military service. This isn’t a sustainable situation from perspective of domestic politics.
Community Matters 