Every Picture Tells A Story

Sometimes a picture, doesn't just paint a thousand words, it tells you a whole story ....

Comic Chase, or Social History?

..... this 'arresting' picture, ostensibly shows a rather funny scene with policeman or security guard, chasing another man, who is dressed in a strange costume, and pulling a funny face. But of course its much more than that.

 

The man in costume is obviously Jewish. He is wearing a Kolpik, which I believe is a traditional Slavic headdress (which in some Jewish traditions is worn by the unmarried sons and grandsons of Rebbes on the Sabbath). So this event could well be something that happened on a Saturday. The coat is what's called a Tish Bekishe (sometimes called a "Jewish kaftan"), and many Hassidic Rebbes of the Hungarian lineage will wear Tish Bekishes in various colours, usually either, blue or silver, as a contrast with the black clothing and white socks.

So his costume indicates that he is ultra orthodox and probably in one of the Hassidic sects. The reason why they dress like this was that the sect was founded in 18th century Eastern Europe by Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov, and this was the clothing of the Jewish quarters in the Austro-Hungarian Empire towns of 'Mitteleuropa'.

Its safe to say that as the police officer isn't waving his gun or shooting at the Jewish man, that this isn't in the Palestinian West-bank. Therefore its likely to be inside Israel proper. So why is the man being chased? Well in Israel the Hassidic Jews are a growing social problem, and they campaign, often with a lot of noisy aggression if usually not actual violence, on social issues such as segregating women from men. So they are often in conflict with the Israeli security forces.

This fact, coupled with the fact that these men's families invariably live on state welfare payments (the men claim that they should never work because they are spending their time in 'prayerful contemplation', but in some cases the women work), and combined with their high birth rates (very large families are the norm), mean that whilst at present they are about 10% of the Israeli population, they are expected to be 20% inside the next two decades. So this means that not only will the other Israelis have to support 20% plus of the population on welfare benefits, they will also be faced by the fact that these sects will be the largest one issue block on the voting register.

This will forever change Israeli politics. How, its hard to say with certainty, as many ultra orthodox don't believe that the state of Israel should exist, but its safe to say that they are very socially conservative (some might say they are actually socially backward). And if you think that this is purely a Jewish or Israeli issue (as if that isn't bad enough, in one of the two places where the next nuclear conflict is most likely to erupt), think again. They are the fastest growing group in all of the Jewish worldwide diaspora, and its thought that they may even split the Jewish traditional support of the Democrats in the USA over the next decade or so.   

So while that picture, seems to just show a comic chase between 21st century law enforcement, and the 18th century religious belief system, in fact it illustrates a social struggle both in Israel and in Judaism world wide, that could have consequences for us all one day.