Please read, it may look like a lot but it is very upsetting! I need advice.
I live in Monroe, NY. About a five minute drive to the town of Kiryas Joel (otherwise known as the poorest community in the US). Forgive me if my figures are wrong, but you can always check the census figures for yourself. 68% of Kiryas Joel citizens are below the poverty line which is by far the worst in the nation. 40% of them receive food stamps. I used to work at the local Walmart as a cashier. On a typical day I would probably ring up about 30-40 Kiryas Joel customers and I'd say about 30-35 of them used food stamps. The second runner up in the country for food stamps is east-side St. Louis. My mother and neighbor work at a local pharmacy and they claim that almost every Kiryas Joel customer that walks into the pharmacy receives medicaid-paid baby strollers, formula, medicine, ect. You may say, "So what? They're poor." But this is not the case. In fact you could make an argument that the citizens of Kiryas Joel live better than those of Monroe. I drive through the community occasionally and all you see is mini-vans (to lug around their 10 person nuclear-families) and mercedes and bmw's. You see a lot of nice cars and SUVs. It is also very common to see some of the men pull out their blackberry or sport a rolex watch. Things that they cannot buy with medicaid or food stamps (such as designer clothes and shoes) they sure as heck will buy with their own money. These are NOT poor people. They are, however, arguably the most corrupt community in the country (as one unit). Their part in local elections for instance. They make up roughly 2/3 of your town's population. So naturally, they make quite the powerful voting block. Whomever the Grand Rabbi of the town votes for, the other Kiryas Joelians follow suit. This is not illegal, however it creates a valuable cover to their evil schemes. If an elected official in town crosses them or talks bad about the town, they will commit politcal suicide since Kiryas Joel pretty much controls the elelction. The citizens of Kiryas Joel go as far as voter fraud to rig elections. Just recently 18 Hasidic men were arrested because they were NYC citizens but they came up to my town to vote alongside Kiryas Joel. They are also notorious for cheating the welfare system. Every once and a while you will hear about someone from Kiryas Joel getting caught, but everyone knows that it is common practice. What usually is the case is that one or two men in the family will own a business and then they will hire the rest of them men in the family to work off the books. So, in the eyes of the town, these men are unemployed and receive unemployment checks. In many cases, the men and women will only be married in the eyes of the community and the rabbi, not in the eyes of NYS. Therefore, you have a single unemployed (Hasidic women are not allowed to work) mother 0f 6-10. She too rakes in welfare money and further contributes to Kiryas Joel's poverty status. Tax exemptions on many buildings and homes due to religious signifiacne are common as well. So basically, they mean to make as much money as possible and avoid giving it back in taxes.
Law and order aside, they're culture and views on outsiders is very unpleasant. Mind you I am very respectful and understanding of other cultures, but I believe them to be more of a cult than anything else. I have lived by them my entire life, but I have never had a full conversation with one. I would LOVE to speak with a Kiryas Joelian just because I'm friendly like that. But it's their cultural practice not to interact with outsiders to their sect. The ONLY time an Hasidic from Kiryas Joel will talk to you is if he has business with you. No "thank you"s or "how are you"s? This doesn't bother me terribly though. Like in most cults, informationa and member's decisions are limited. Women cannot drive, attend school past the 8th grade or so, or show any skin aside from their face and head. It is custom for them to marry at 15 or 16 and birth 6-10 children. Men are educated a little more than women and are expected to work for another Hasidic man (NEVER an outsider). Nobody can go to college or trade school except for the Rabbi's. By doing so, the citizens of Kiryas Joel are completely dependent on the educated advice and leadership of the Rabbi.
I am very concerned about this and conisder it to be a big problem. Any adive on what I should do?
I live in Monroe, NY. About a five minute drive to the town of Kiryas Joel (otherwise known as the poorest community in the US). Forgive me if my figures are wrong, but you can always check the census figures for yourself. 68% of Kiryas Joel citizens are below the poverty line which is by far the worst in the nation. 40% of them receive food stamps. I used to work at the local Walmart as a cashier. On a typical day I would probably ring up about 30-40 Kiryas Joel customers and I'd say about 30-35 of them used food stamps. The second runner up in the country for food stamps is east-side St. Louis. My mother and neighbor work at a local pharmacy and they claim that almost every Kiryas Joel customer that walks into the pharmacy receives medicaid-paid baby strollers, formula, medicine, ect. You may say, "So what? They're poor." But this is not the case. In fact you could make an argument that the citizens of Kiryas Joel live better than those of Monroe. I drive through the community occasionally and all you see is mini-vans (to lug around their 10 person nuclear-families) and mercedes and bmw's. You see a lot of nice cars and SUVs. It is also very common to see some of the men pull out their blackberry or sport a rolex watch. Things that they cannot buy with medicaid or food stamps (such as designer clothes and shoes) they sure as heck will buy with their own money. These are NOT poor people. They are, however, arguably the most corrupt community in the country (as one unit). Their part in local elections for instance. They make up roughly 2/3 of your town's population. So naturally, they make quite the powerful voting block. Whomever the Grand Rabbi of the town votes for, the other Kiryas Joelians follow suit. This is not illegal, however it creates a valuable cover to their evil schemes. If an elected official in town crosses them or talks bad about the town, they will commit politcal suicide since Kiryas Joel pretty much controls the elelction. The citizens of Kiryas Joel go as far as voter fraud to rig elections. Just recently 18 Hasidic men were arrested because they were NYC citizens but they came up to my town to vote alongside Kiryas Joel. They are also notorious for cheating the welfare system. Every once and a while you will hear about someone from Kiryas Joel getting caught, but everyone knows that it is common practice. What usually is the case is that one or two men in the family will own a business and then they will hire the rest of them men in the family to work off the books. So, in the eyes of the town, these men are unemployed and receive unemployment checks. In many cases, the men and women will only be married in the eyes of the community and the rabbi, not in the eyes of NYS. Therefore, you have a single unemployed (Hasidic women are not allowed to work) mother 0f 6-10. She too rakes in welfare money and further contributes to Kiryas Joel's poverty status. Tax exemptions on many buildings and homes due to religious signifiacne are common as well. So basically, they mean to make as much money as possible and avoid giving it back in taxes.
Law and order aside, they're culture and views on outsiders is very unpleasant. Mind you I am very respectful and understanding of other cultures, but I believe them to be more of a cult than anything else. I have lived by them my entire life, but I have never had a full conversation with one. I would LOVE to speak with a Kiryas Joelian just because I'm friendly like that. But it's their cultural practice not to interact with outsiders to their sect. The ONLY time an Hasidic from Kiryas Joel will talk to you is if he has business with you. No "thank you"s or "how are you"s? This doesn't bother me terribly though. Like in most cults, informationa and member's decisions are limited. Women cannot drive, attend school past the 8th grade or so, or show any skin aside from their face and head. It is custom for them to marry at 15 or 16 and birth 6-10 children. Men are educated a little more than women and are expected to work for another Hasidic man (NEVER an outsider). Nobody can go to college or trade school except for the Rabbi's. By doing so, the citizens of Kiryas Joel are completely dependent on the educated advice and leadership of the Rabbi.
I am very concerned about this and conisder it to be a big problem. Any adive on what I should do?
