Regarding the travesty occurring in Emmanuel [where religious parents were jailed for refusing to send their children to school with non-religious children], irrespective of the details of whether the parents were right, wrong, racist or other — the government of Israel, through its courts, exercised wrongful and bullying power by effectively jailing the parents of these children.
What civilized court in any Western country would punish truancy or perceived cultural/racial bias with sending parents to jail? Clearly, the response of the High Court of Israel was entirely out of proportion to the possible wrong committed.
Forget for a moment that many chasidim do damage to the Israeli economy and security by not joining the workforce, or serving in the armed forces. Set aside your bias that many accept government welfare but don’t recognize the state. The Slonim chasidim’s pacifist reaction is to be admired, and despite the bias many hold toward the religious, nothing justifies the wrong committed by the high court toward these parents. The punishment was excessive. As the adage goes, ‘two wrongs don’t make right.’
