Trump. You either love him or hate him. No one is “parve,” it is polarizing the Jewish community of the US.
The mistaken working assumption is that everyone you associate with – at work, in synagogue, in school, in your extended family – is of the same point of view as you. If they don’t think as you do, it is no longer enough to shrug and change the subject. They are wrong, tensions emerge, and relationships end.
Trump, like Bibi Netanyahu, is an extremely polarizing character. Having just celebrated the completion of the first year in his second term, there are still three more years for him to maintain his presence at the center of the world’s stage.
Many members of the Diaspora are virulently anti-Bibi and are of the opinion that Donald Trump has empowered Netanyahu. They are not anti-Israel. They believe that the entire conflict with the Palestinians would be resolved if Bibi were removed from power.
Throughout modern history, there has been a series of conflicts within the Jewish community. There were ideological differences. Socialists versus capitalists. Israel versus Diaspora. Revolutionaries versus supporters of the establishment. There were religious differences – Reform and Orthodox, non-Zionist and Zionists, eating “kitniyot” on Passover or not. At times, those conflicts became violent.
History of Jews arguing among themselves
Internal heated debate among Jews is not uncommon. Prime among them was the conflict between the schools of Hillel and Shamai.
The Schools of Hillel and Shamai had raging debates during the late Second Temple period. Hillel died about the year 10 CE, and Shamai about 30 CE. Their students and their schools continued the conflicts for decades. Hillel was the more open and lenient of the two, while Shamai was more closed and narrow in his interpretation.
There was no personal animus between the two; their disagreement was considered “valid for the sake of heaven.” So much so, the children of their students intermarried. There was one glaring exception. Described in the Tosefta of Shabbat 1:15-16, it is called the Day of the Sword, also called the Day Beit Shamai Overcame Beit Hillel.
It began with a meeting at the House or Attic of Hananiah ben Hezekiah ben Gurion about decrees.
Representatives of the school of Shamai blocked the door, preventing the school of Hillel from entering. Violence broke out. People were injured. Several sources say some were killed. In the end, 18 “Gezeirot” (decrees) were passed in favor of Shamai.
Later rabbis say that this story is metaphorical, absolutely not emblematic of the differences between the two schools, merely a terrible exception to their customary debates and unity.
Debates and differences among Jewish sects and schools of thought continued. In more modern times, they even resulted in the cutting off of beards and “peyot” (sidelocks).
In the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, that’s what happened in the hassidic enclave in Brooklyn, New York called Williamsburg. A physical conflict between Satmar hassidim and Chabad hassidim became so fierce that Satmar hassidim would tackle and cut the beards and peyot of Lubavitch hassidim. The ongoing conflict did not fizzle out until the early 80’s.
The cutting of another’s facial hair was a violent act of de-judaization. Shearing the beard and sidelocks of another Jew was humiliating. It was an act that forced the victims, in this case adherents of the Chabad Lubavitch sect, to violate a Torah precept.
Lubavitchers were attacked while walking through Satmar neighborhoods. Lee Avenue between Hooper and Division, Rodney Street between Lee and Division, Rodney near Penn, and Division between Bedford and Lee were the locations of nearly all attacks.
There were no retaliatory attacks.
There were certainly many reasons to retaliate and numerous opportunities, but the Lubavitcher Rebbe made it very clear. He told his adherents not to organize and not to attack Satmar.
They did as told, and the conflict eventually died out – Lubavitchers simply avoided the troublesome areas, and other issues became focal points of attention.
The conflict, Jew fighting Jew on the streets of New York, was not made very public. It was an ideological conflict. The animus between these two hassidic sects was deeply ingrained. Satmar was inwardly focused; Chabad was outwardly focused. In Williamsburg, Satmar had overwhelming numerical superiority.
From the Chabad/Lubavitch point of view, had this gone public, it would have deeply damaged their image. The Lubavitcher Rebbe made it very clear that de-escalating and avoidance were the best strategies. If there is no one to attack, there will be no attacks.
As for Satmar, the power conflict between the sons of the Rebbe, the decision as to which son would take over the reins, took center stage. Southern Williamsburg was burgeoning, and the Satmar community was growing fast. They needed city funds for housing and schools. Anti-Jewish attacks by non-Jews were rising. They needed the city’s help, and a hooligan reputation was not an asset.
Today, we are witnessing the rise of anti-Jewish attacks and rabid antisemitism. The golden age for Jews in America may be bygone days. Threats to Israel continue to loom large. We, as Jews, have always had differences of opinion, but it never got the best of us. We can’t let it get the best of us now.
The writer is a columnist and a social and political commentator. Watch his TV show Thinking Out Loud on JBS.