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| Jacob Daskal (Ynet) |
Shomrim was founded by Jacob Daskal to protect vulnerable and elderly Jews against violent attacks by antisemites and assorted other criminals. The many people that have benefitted from this group will surely sing its praises which are richly deserved in their case. As Shtetl (a Charedi publication I never heard of until I was sent a link to it) reports:
The group shares examples on its website of times it has helped the NYPD apprehend people suspected of robbery, vandalism, and other crimes, raised awareness of antisemitic incidents, recovered lost and stolen items, helped respond to weather emergencies, and dispensed safety tips to people in the neighborhood.
My guess is that this group was formed with Rabbi Meir Kahane’s JDL (Jewish Defense League) in mind. JDL was originally formed for the same reason and was quite effective in that role. But they had similar problems and later ‘expanded’ their role to include violent protests that put innocent lives at risk. Even though what they were protesting was a legitimate target, their methods of protest made them more violent than the thugs they used to protect vulnerable Jews from. As noted in Shtetl:
...critics of Shomrim point to a more problematic track record of reported vigilantism, corruption, and covering up abuse cases within the Haredi community.
They might think their methods are legitimate since it is for purposes of protecting innocent elderly Jews. But vigilantism, corruption, and covering up Charedi abuse can never be excused.
When innocent people get hurt because of their lack of resources, inadequate investigation skills, and overzealous policies - they in essence become the very people they are protecting their co-religionists from. The only difference being that Shomrim’s victims tend to be black.
I am not accusing Shomrim of being racist. Although I’m sure some of them might be. I’m just saying that innocent black people are often their targets based on the frequency of attacks against elderly Jews by thugs and criminals that happen to be black.
That law enforcement looks the other way does not help matters. This gives Shmorim a veneer of respectability. And even praise by a public appreciative of the extra protection they provide. That ends up giving Shomrim a lot more power than they are entitled to by law.
It is with all that in mind that I am disgusted but not surprised by their reaction to Jacob Daskal’s admission of guilt to sexually abusing a 15 year old girl as part of a plea deal:
The reaction from community leaders was mostly silence. The chair of the Boro Park Shomrim, Rabbi Berish Freilich, suggested he was uncertain whether a crime happened at all. “It’s an isolated incident, if it was whatever it was…
Freilich…only grudgingly accepted that there might be any validity to the claims against Daskal: “I guess if the police and the prosecutors have tried it, maybe there was something there,” he said. The coordinators of Boro Park Shomrim, Motty Brauner and Motty Katz, did not respond to requests for comment, and Shomrim did not issue any public statements about the guilty plea, outside of Freilich’s comments to Shtetl.
Unfortunately the more extreme elements of the Charedi community say (and perhaps even believe) that sex abuse among their segment of Orthodoxy is impossible. Even after convictions of the most heinous of sex criminals. As the following excerpt from Shtetl demonstrates:
In 1995, when a rabbi and his assistant were charged with sexually abusing a 15-year-old girl, Freilich told the New York Times he thought the girl “drummed up a charge.”
"It is impossible that an Orthodox Hasidic person would even speak to a female, much less touch her,” Freilich said at the time.
I know that Shmorim has helped a lot of people. But an organization that excuses, tries minimize, or soften a sex crime committed by one of their own should not be allowed to operate. The damage that does to survivors, and the aid and comfort it gives to sex abusers overrides the benefits to the community they might otherwise provide.
This doesn’t mean that there cannot be civilian safety patrols that keep an eye on their communities and report incidences of crime to the police. And even jump in to stop a violent attack in progress by all means at their disposal. But it cannot be an organization that thinks they can do whatever they want with impunity and defends or minimizes the crimes of sex abusers. That is not only unjust. It is a Chilul HaShem!
