As the title of the programme suggests there will be a fair amount of introspection and narrative about the customs of match-making and marriage in the secretive community. It may also shed some light on a fiercely private religious sect, whom often draws criticism from other members of the local community.
Having lived as a resident for some fifteen years in the midst of a 20,000 strong fervently religious community, I have been fortunate enough to observe my neighbours a little closer than the fleeting BBC cameras that have produced tonight’s documentary.
There is something of an admiration, on my part, for the Hasidic community’s burning conviction to their beliefs and way of life; the men are always dressed in dark, formal clothes; the preference for black passed down from 18th century Rabbis, whom considered brightly coloured clothes would arouse resentment from outsiders.
Their laws and codes are vast, complex and require great discipline and enthusiasm; the Torah- the Five Books of Moses – contains some 613 Mitzvoth, or commandments, some of which are aimed at just the men, or the women, or solely for the benefit of priestly elders.
It is thought that their practice of zealously rocking back and forth whilst praying inflicts a high incidence of Myopia, short sightedness, and there is something certainly to be said for a community that relies on their own emergency ambulance service rather than the NHS and educates their children, primarily in, private schools.
However, it has to be said that the more concerning aspect of a private community is down to the same self-sufficiency and independence the Hasidic Jews cultivate. This is not so much American soil, where a self-contained community can blossom, build to their hearts content and segregate from all that is ‘corruptible’ and ‘forbidden’. Stamford Hill is situated in the borough of Hackney where you inevitably have to navigate through a rich, multi-cultural fabric of people and places.
Recent rumours had suggested that certain parts of Stamford Hill are now becoming off-limits to goyim -non Jews, which is a particularly disturbing rumour. The London Late post will be taking a closer look at this development in coming months to establish whether this local tale has any truth or is simply a matter of anti-Semitic speculation.
It is, however, one firm belief of the private population that sex is purely for procreation rather than pleasure. In being such fanatical followers, there is little room for deviation on the laws regarding such a tempting indulgence. Subsequently, the average Hasidic household is populated with 2.5 as many children as the average for England and Wales; my next-door neighbour has some ten children and her neighbour, also Hasidic, has an equal amount of off-spring.
The high household count demonstrates one example of how the Stamford-hill Jewish community impacts on the environment and themselves. Even with a determined effort to acquire more housing space in Stamford Hill; private home-owners often find themselves refusing the advances of unannounced visitors knocking on their doors to enquire if they want to 'house swap' or sell. There is a sense that there simply is not enough adequate housing available for the expanding Jewish community.
Hackney council’s restrictions on planning permission means there has been a source of tension for the Hasidic Jews as their community has grown. Instances of frustrated Jewish families carrying out disruptive, illegal development of properties have been a source of resentment for private homeowners in Stamford Hill.
Tonight’s documentary is certainly worth the glimpse behind the cloak of Orthodox Judaism.
However, there is certainly a whole range of interesting issues that need closer inspection.
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