NEW YORK
Rockland County Times
Brooklyn – Child sexual abuse is an infrequent but unfortunate and tragic occurrence in any community, but adding insult to injury by purposely ostracizing a child’s family almost seems too cruel to comprehend.
Still, for reporting sexual abuse of children, Orthodox and Hasidic Jewish families, also known as Haredi or ritually observant, often report strong ostracism from their community members up to and including exclusion from housing and having children booted from private schools.
“There is no nice way of saying it: Our community protects molesters,” Pearl Engelman, whose son reported he was fondled by a United Talmudical Academy teacher in Williamsburg, explained to the New York Times. “Other than that, we are wonderful.”
Such communities often prefer to handle problems internally through rabbinic authorities. According to the interpretation of many rabbis, informing on other Jews, or “mesirah,” is forbidden under Jewish law.
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