did anyone see the Oprah documentary on Hasidic Jews?

erosa

It was on a few weeks ago on the Own network & I had dvr'd it and I just watched it last night.  I had no idea they were so strict.  The family consisted of 5 kids, the oldest being 17 and he had never watched tv, ever, nor used the internet.. they had never even heard of Oprah before this interview.... nothing at all.  I'm always intrigued when I see them around and in the park, I had no idea what it really meant.  A part of me can't believe that they all follow those traditions so rigidly. 

dmendel

Man, I wanted to see that!  I wonder if it will be on again?

erosa

Maybe you can catch it online somewhere, it was really intersting.  They even had a black family on that was Hasidic.  It was a 2-part series.

laurenpetro

to be fair, it's easy not to have watched TV or used a computer if you've never seen them before.

suz&mark

There is a movie called "The Chosen" with Robbie Benson from the 80s that I love where a non-hasidic jewish teenage boy and a hasidic teenage boy become friends in Brooklyn in the 40s.  It really goes into how that culture lives and the expectations of the sons, etc.  If you were interested in that show, you might like that movie.

AmyRob04

laurenpetro:

to be fair, it's easy not to have watched TV or used a computer if you've never seen them before.

Fair point but when you think about how much you use technology for - not just for personal use but for work - it's really kind of amazing there this is a whole sect that doesn't use it at all. I'm sure someone will point out that they don't need it AT ALL for work, but most people, most businesses, rely heavily on technology to keep their businesses running.

TV, I can see.

laurenpetro

AmyRob04:

laurenpetro:

to be fair, it's easy not to have watched TV or used a computer if you've never seen them before.

Fair point but when you think about how much you use technology for - not just for personal use but for work - it's really kind of amazing there this is a whole sect that doesn't use it at all. I'm sure someone will point out that they don't need it AT ALL for work, but most people, most businesses, rely heavily on technology to keep their businesses running.

TV, I can see.

for the most part around here they live in very insulated communities where they actually don't need the technology and as far as they're concerned, have gotten along fine without it.  and to an extent, they're right.

i am much more amazed at how the women are treated and are ok with it but again it's a matter of you go with what you know.

erosa

laurenpetro:

AmyRob04:

laurenpetro:

to be fair, it's easy not to have watched TV or used a computer if you've never seen them before.

Fair point but when you think about how much you use technology for - not just for personal use but for work - it's really kind of amazing there this is a whole sect that doesn't use it at all. I'm sure someone will point out that they don't need it AT ALL for work, but most people, most businesses, rely heavily on technology to keep their businesses running.

TV, I can see.

for the most part around here they live in very insulated communities where they actually don't need the technology and as far as they're concerned, have gotten along fine without it.  and to an extent, they're right.

i am much more amazed at how the women are treated and are ok with it but again it's a matter of you go with what you know.

I guess they didn't really go into depth of how women were treated, because they seemed very happy to me!  But like you said, however it is that they are treated, thats all they know so its okay.

I'm thinking that the ones I see in the mall looking all fashionable with their Gucci bags & 3 karat diamonds are not so insulated, right?  Obviously their men make a lot of $$$ but if they're in the mall, they must be a little more lenient then the ones who live in that community in Brooklyn? 

hookersbabe

erosa:

laurenpetro:

AmyRob04:

laurenpetro:

to be fair, it's easy not to have watched TV or used a computer if you've never seen them before.

Fair point but when you think about how much you use technology for - not just for personal use but for work - it's really kind of amazing there this is a whole sect that doesn't use it at all. I'm sure someone will point out that they don't need it AT ALL for work, but most people, most businesses, rely heavily on technology to keep their businesses running.

TV, I can see.

for the most part around here they live in very insulated communities where they actually don't need the technology and as far as they're concerned, have gotten along fine without it.  and to an extent, they're right.

i am much more amazed at how the women are treated and are ok with it but again it's a matter of you go with what you know.

I guess they didn't really go into depth of how women were treated, because they seemed very happy to me!  But like you said, however it is that they are treated, thats all they know so its okay.

I'm thinking that the ones I see in the mall looking all fashionable with their Gucci bags & 3 karat diamonds are not so insulated, right?  Obviously their men make a lot of $$$ but if they're in the mall, they must be a little more lenient then the ones who live in that community in Brooklyn? 

the women you see in the mall are not hasidic...they may be orthodox, which is very, very different that Hasidic.

there was a very interesting article on abc news earlier this month about a woman that left her hasidic community.  the treatment she described prior to leaving was horrific.

erosa

hookersbabe:

erosa:

laurenpetro:

AmyRob04:

laurenpetro:

to be fair, it's easy not to have watched TV or used a computer if you've never seen them before.

Fair point but when you think about how much you use technology for - not just for personal use but for work - it's really kind of amazing there this is a whole sect that doesn't use it at all. I'm sure someone will point out that they don't need it AT ALL for work, but most people, most businesses, rely heavily on technology to keep their businesses running.

TV, I can see.

for the most part around here they live in very insulated communities where they actually don't need the technology and as far as they're concerned, have gotten along fine without it.  and to an extent, they're right.

i am much more amazed at how the women are treated and are ok with it but again it's a matter of you go with what you know.

I guess they didn't really go into depth of how women were treated, because they seemed very happy to me!  But like you said, however it is that they are treated, thats all they know so its okay.

I'm thinking that the ones I see in the mall looking all fashionable with their Gucci bags & 3 karat diamonds are not so insulated, right?  Obviously their men make a lot of $$$ but if they're in the mall, they must be a little more lenient then the ones who live in that community in Brooklyn? 

the women you see in the mall are not hasidic...they are most likely orthodox, which is very, very different that Hasidic.

Ahhh.....  I didn't know that...  I guess since they dressed like they described in the show and wear the wigs, etc.. I thought they were Hasidic.... well that explains everything....  I was so confused when I was watching the show.  Lol

BeachBaby07

hookersbabe:

erosa:

laurenpetro:

AmyRob04:

laurenpetro:

to be fair, it's easy not to have watched TV or used a computer if you've never seen them before.

Fair point but when you think about how much you use technology for - not just for personal use but for work - it's really kind of amazing there this is a whole sect that doesn't use it at all. I'm sure someone will point out that they don't need it AT ALL for work, but most people, most businesses, rely heavily on technology to keep their businesses running.

TV, I can see.

for the most part around here they live in very insulated communities where they actually don't need the technology and as far as they're concerned, have gotten along fine without it.  and to an extent, they're right.

i am much more amazed at how the women are treated and are ok with it but again it's a matter of you go with what you know.

I guess they didn't really go into depth of how women were treated, because they seemed very happy to me!  But like you said, however it is that they are treated, thats all they know so its okay.

I'm thinking that the ones I see in the mall looking all fashionable with their Gucci bags & 3 karat diamonds are not so insulated, right?  Obviously their men make a lot of $$$ but if they're in the mall, they must be a little more lenient then the ones who live in that community in Brooklyn? 

the women you see in the mall are not hasidic...they may be orthodox, which is very, very different that Hasidic.

there was a very interesting article on abc news earlier this month about a woman that left her hasidic community.  the treatment she described prior to leaving was horrific.

you can usually tell by the shoes and the quality of wigs if they are orthodox or hasidic. I grew up next to Lakewood which is pretty much the largest cluster of hasidic population in NJ. I would love to see the special because in my experience dealing with them for work,banking, grocery shopping, retail shopping and day to day life, they are incredibly rude to non-hasidics, and it always struck me when I would see a young girl of like 16 or 17 with a few kids and a husband in his 30's. 

erosa

oh, wow, that sucks....  A lot of the things they were talking about made so much sense & I loved how the kids were with their parents, they were so sweet...

TSD

BeachBaby07:

you can usually tell by the shoes and the quality of wigs if they are orthodox or hasidic. I grew up next to Lakewood which is pretty much the largest cluster of hasidic population in NJ. I would love to see the special because in my experience dealing with them for work,banking, grocery shopping, retail shopping and day to day life, they are incredibly rude to non-hasidics, and it always struck me when I would see a young girl of like 16 or 17 with a few kids and a husband in his 30's. 

The guys aren't necessarily older, they just look a lot older because of the facial hair. I've know some in their 20's that look older than my husband in his 40's.

randp

Yes!  and i found it totally facinating.  it was amazing to see the families interacting so nicely - no distractions from TV, internet, etc. - and how they danced together at night, played card games, etc.

to the pp who asked about how the women are treated - the women that were interviewed said they are held in very high regard by the men.  they are not subordinate to men. 

this was interesting -  hasidic men cannot touch women - even their own wife - in public.  they couldn't even shake hands w/oprah.

 the most interesting was a woman who used to be a DJ for a radio station who then married a hasidic man and adopted the lifestyle.  i would imagine it would be very hard going from being exposed to everything (tv, etc) and then having to give it up.  in fact, she said to oprah "i haven't seen you in 15 yrs".  i thought that was pretty funny.

all in all, i would recommend it to everyone to see.  really interesting!!!!

erosa

randp:

Yes!  and i found it totally facinating.  it was amazing to see the families interacting so nicely - no distractions from TV, internet, etc. - and how they danced together at night, played card games, etc.

this is what I meant... I loved the family interaction....  Did you catch the part where they can't touch their wives 2 weeks out of the month& after they have their period, they need to take a special bath... very interesting.

JerseyGirlP

suz&mark:

There is a movie called "The Chosen" with Robbie Benson from the 80s that I love where a non-hasidic jewish teenage boy and a hasidic teenage boy become friends in Brooklyn in the 40s.  It really goes into how that culture lives and the expectations of the sons, etc.  If you were interested in that show, you might like that movie.

The book it was based on is really good.  I've never seen the movie but it was part of a series I read in HS (the first was assigned but I liked it so I read the rest) )

suz&mark

Right- I forgot to mention that the movie is based on the book "The Chosen" by Chaim Potock- which you may also like!

erosa

suz&mark:

Right- I forgot to mention that the movie is based on the book "The Chosen" by Chaim Potock- which you may also like!

Thanks, I'm not a reader, but I will definitely look for the movie.