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NEW YORK – While Mayor Bill de Blasio declared a public health emergency last week following a measles outbreak in Brooklyn's Jewish community, a heated debate over the issue erupted outside the conference Press.
"How can you deprive me of my religious freedom?", A young ultra-Orthodox mother, surrounded by friends, asked to know the existence of a Hasidic pediatrician on the sidewalk. Another said, "We are talking about the idea that God created all humans perfectly. To inject something into them is to say that God did not create a perfect design. "
"First of all, it has nothing to do with Yiddishkeit," the doctor said angrily, shaking the index of the group of mothers in front of him.
Voices were heard and local journalists who had just pulled out of the mayor's announcement – ordering unvaccinated people living in Williamsburg to receive the measles vaccine within two days – rushed to seize the dead end.
The city of New York has recorded some 329 confirmed cases of measles since last October, all concentrated in the ultra-Orthodox (or Haredi) neighborhoods of Williamsburg and Borough Park. The vast majority of victims are children. Although no deaths have been recorded so far, the complications have been as serious as the swelling of the brain.
The De Blasio emergency declaration ordered all children over 6 months of age living in four Brooklyn postal codes to be vaccinated against measles, mumps and rubella (MMR). Those who do not have proof of immunity could be fined $ 1,000.
The yeshivas and nurseries in these areas were required to accept only vaccinated children, to keep medical records and assistance on the spot, as well as to give the authorities immediate access or to close them, as was the case at the United Talmudical Academy in Williamsburg this week.
23 other yeshivas and daycare programs have received notifications of infractions.
"I'm perfectly fine that my children are catching measles," Esther Esther said on camera, one of the anti-vaccination mothers involved in the confrontation, adding that she would pay fine if necessary .
Voice minority
In recent months, although some have suggested that religious beliefs are at the root of the epidemic, many members of the Orthodox community have strongly disputed this claim, stressing that it is not the only way to address the epidemic. There was nothing Jewish in the decision not to vaccinate your children against measles.
>> Read more: Why Orthodox Jewish communities are at the center of a measles epidemic in the United States ■ Unvaccinated children are subject to a ban on public space in the United States New York during a measles epidemic
"In fact, it's just the opposite. Especially at the present time, every rabbi or responsible and prominent community leader will say: Go ahead, vaccinate them because otherwise you put lives at risk, "says Gary Schlesinger, CEO of ParCare Health and Medical. Center in Williamsburg and Borough Park.
"There is no prominent official rabbi who has come out and written a letter affirming his support for" anti – vaxxers. "This is certainly not a religious issue, it is not a religious matter. is misinformation, "he told Haaretz.
Schlesinger adds that unlike other religious communities, Jews should not need a religious exemption from vaccination. "The anti-vaxxer community is present around the world, not only in Williamsburg," he says. "You have very strong anti-vaxxer communities in Texas, California, in all types of areas."
Linking anti-vaxxers with Judaism is a "false news", he complains. "It's a shame [the media] make a problem about it, because the mere fact of talking about it really puts it in the foreground. "
Avi Greenstein, CEO of the Borough Park Jewish Community Council, notes that Jews are "forced to do everything in their power to keep their bodies healthy." Anti-vaxxers are a minute minute area that is part of our community. But rabbis, community leaders, school heads, synagogue leaders – each one of them is determined to get vaccinated. "
The Borough Park representative said that schools in his neighborhood sent letters several months ago to parents to inform their parents that their children would not be allowed to attend classes unless they were vaccinated. He also pointed out that local rabbis issued proclamations in favor of vaccination.
"Some people are very stubborn, careless and put their children and other children in danger. But this should not be seen as a community. Basically, nothing could be further from the truth, "says Greenstein.
Allison Josephs, founder of the Jewish and City Group, which aims to eliminate stereotypes about Orthodox Jews, agrees. "If you have religious Jews who have subscribed to anti-vax hysteria, they do not do it by religion," she says.
Josephs, a mother of four, decided to start her organization in 2007 after becoming more observant herself and realizing that she had been brought up with a negative bias towards the Orthodox community. "I'm trying to figure out what's driving the Jewish anti-vaxxers," she says. "It's certainly what they are trying to be healthy, but it's really a mistake and a lack of critical thinking. They go directly against their leaders to do that.
"It's a bit of a juicy story that the media can understand:" Look at what the Brooklyn Jews do, "adds Joseph.
"Infective Hatred"
Jewish organizations and community leaders have also warned in recent weeks that the association of the anti-vaxxer movement with Orthodox Judaism could have serious consequences – and even exacerbate anti-Semitic feelings and acts of violence. These have already increased in recent years, particularly in Brooklyn.
Last week, local media reported an incident in which a Brooklyn bus driver initially refused to let an Orthodox woman ride on her vehicle, shouting "measles". And the New York Times published an article highlighting the growing tensions in the community resulting from the epidemic.
"There are reports that the Orthodox Jewish community unfairly identified as the only responsible population is unaware of key factors, including the fact that members of the ultra-Orthodox community who do not vaccinate their children often do so for the same reasons as those who do not. believers, "the Anti-Defamation League said in a statement, calling for sensitivity.
The orthodox organization Agudath Israel of America has, at the same time, warned against what she calls "infectious hatred".
"Our public discourse is depreciated when individuals and media point to the blame for the spread of measles outright – and sometimes violently – against the" ultra-Orthodox "community, the group writes. "The comments on social media have been particularly appalling in this regard. It's time to meet and collaborate to meet a challenge. "
The statement adds, "There is no excuse for using a public health problem as a platform from which to launch poison antisemitic rhetoric."
Greenstein warns that "when we look back in history, the enemies always took the risk of saying" it is the fault of the Jews "- and that [resulted in] the most terrible tragedies we have suffered. "
He adds that he and his wife have not hesitated to vaccinate their two children and that there is "only a very small segment of the community" that opposes the use of the vaccine. "Unfortunately, they make themselves heard, but it's not the community as a whole." He calls it "shocking and offensive" to read reports that some people use the crisis for anti-Semitic purposes.
During the last major measles outbreak in 2013, Josephs remembers receiving a shocking comment on social networks on his group's website. "It said something like," Immunize your children, evil Jews! »» She remembers. "Who is to blame for the [latest] outbreak in Brooklyn? She asks. "I would say that anti-vaxxers are. It's not because they are Jewish. "
The opposition of the community to anti-vaxxers is so strong that, in a very unusual move that some have described as "historic," the Yiddish newspaper Der Yid (a popular weekly associated with the Jewish Hasidic Satmar) has published an editorial calling vaccinating their children. Entitled "Without meaning! Heartless! The Torah-less and reckless, "he declares:" We are not doctors; we have not studied medicine or statistics like geniuses warning you of the dangers of vaccines. But we know who to trust when there is a serious health problem in the community. The Torah 'Venishmartem meod the nafshoseichem' – to protect our health – and if recognized experts tell us to vaccinate, then we must do it. "
He added that the anti-vaccination mothers who spoke to the press while de Blasio declared a public health emergency "tarnished the image of practicing Jews".
"If you believe in these myths and if you want to go back in time, a hundred years ago, when people were not vaccinating, keep your kids at home as it was the norm a century ago and not do not complicate the life of the world. those who suffer enough, "concluded Der Yid.
"The good news is that I see generally that schools, shuls and Jewish organizations are really applying the rule of zero tolerance," Josephs observes. "I think we start as a community saying, Well, even if you have these ideas floating around your head, you can do it at home but do not expose us and our community to that."
Paschal danger
The recent measles outbreak is part of a larger resurgence of the disease. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a total of 387 cases of measles were confirmed in 15 states from January 1 to March 28 – the second highest number of cases reported since measles was declared eliminated in the states. United States in 2000..
The outbreak in Brooklyn began in October after a minor was infected while traveling to Israel, where it was also a problem. The child infected unvaccinated people in his community when the family returned.
Such international travel to affected areas, closely related Orthodox groups and the high number of children per family are all factors that make the Orthodox Jewish community more susceptible to contagious diseases, experts say.
"The epidemic is naturally heavier in Williamsburg because it is a much more condensed area," says Schlesinger. "Williamsburg has a lot of these big rental properties. They have 24 floors and you have nearly 100 families in each building. So, if there is an escape like the one that currently exists and you have unvaccinated children with vaccinated children playing together, you will see that much more heavily because of the way it is organized, "adds there.
When Blasio and the city's health department announced their emergency measures, they also warned that the Passover holiday could spur the spread of measles in the community and elsewhere. Last week, 44 new cases of measles were reported in Brooklyn.
"As Passover approaches, it is important that all New Yorkers be vaccinated, particularly if they plan to go overseas to Europe or Israel, or to parts of the United States. United who are experiencing serious epidemics, "said Health Commissioner Oxiris Barbot last week. . "With Passover … we will put more people in danger."
Josephs says that as many Passover seders will take place in people's homes, they must absolutely check with their guests: "What is your status? What is your situation?" Because this is not something with which do you want to play."
Some kosher hotels in the New York area who are preparing to host Jewish families for Pes'a have even stated that they would not accept unvaccinated guests, according to a report from the JTA released Wednesday.
Why be a Jewish anti-vaxxer?
Over the last few months, she has been trying to understand why opposing vaccinations might interest – and even make sense – for some Jews, despite the fact that it went against the religious establishment.
"Part of me wonders if there are reservations about not trusting non-Jews," she says. "Maybe because non-Jewish governments have gathered their ancestors? That may be what they like. "
In general, she adds, the idea of getting the best medical care for children is widespread in the community and local doctors are usually "revered."
"I think there is distrust, or at least nervous feelings, the more insular you are. But again, if you look at one of the best hospitals in the New York area, you'll always find tons of Hassidic Jews – so it's a mystery to me.
"I would say it's a bit of a Jewish idea not to accept universal thinking as an automatic truth," Josephs speculates, pointing out that in the Bible Abraham decided to oppose idolatry even though was commonly accepted.
In recent weeks, she has learned that anti-vaccination pamphlets and robot calls circulated in the community.
"When you talk to [community] Leaders – rabbis and political leaders – do not really know who does it, "she says. "They do not understand how crazy people have become."
This polarization could close people to the debate, she warns.
"I think that, unfortunately, for some of them, it has become almost dead or dead – and for the Jewish questions of life and death, we would break almost anything to survive," says Josephs. "You have situations of people who have become thugs against their own rebbes."
Greenstein points out that even those who violently oppose vaccination do so because they believe that "the damage and toxicity of these vaccines could be more harmful to their children than those of measles.
"We know this is not true, but we must work to achieve them in a way that they will accept," he adds. "It will not be settled overnight."
Greenstein believes that to convince anti-vaccinators to vaccinate their families, they must be included in the fight. Because people think: [the authorities] think I do not care about my children. Obviously, they do not take me, so why should I accept their help? "
"That's why it's so important to work with the community," he says. "By helping them understand that we do not belittle them, we respect them. We give them new information on which they can make a new decision. "
Energetic approach
At his announcement in Williamsburg, de Blasio tried to convey a sense of urgency, saying the city would reluctantly inflict fines on people who do not comply with the vaccination order.
"We are in a situation where children are in danger. We must take this seriously. Each of us should feel responsible for the situation, "he said. "There is no doubt that vaccines are safe, effective and save lives."
Schlesinger says she has already noticed an increase in the number of people visiting her clinics to learn about measles vaccine the day after the mayor's call.
"It tells me that there are a number of parents who were not sure who were on the sidelines, and that's the kind of people this announcement will help," he says. . "This strong reaction from the mayor and the health commissioner has pushed them to vaccinate.
On Wednesday, New York City health officials said that 16,000 measles vaccines had been administered since Blasio's declaration, but more than 3,300 children had still not been vaccinated in the affected areas. affected.
"There will always be people who think they are smarter than the doctors and the medical establishment," says Schlesinger. "These are people who, even if you want to talk to them, you will not convince them."
Schlesinger and his staff have also decided to take steps to eradicate the epidemic. "The pediatricians at my center are very clear: if a parent comes in, they are asked about the vaccination. If they say they do not vaccinate, my doctors will tell them to go and get another health center, "he says. "We can not put our patients at risk. If you put people in danger, you do not go to us. You can not choose: if you believe in doctors, you must believe it. In Rockland County, just north of New York, officials on Tuesday ordered all unvaccinated people exposed to the disease to be banned from entering public spaces. up to three weeks, including places of worship.
However, some community members feel that these somewhat unusual approaches are not the right way to fight the epidemic and contain it.
"Health officials in New York City and New York State have done a terrible job in getting the message out in a correct and appropriate way – a message that can really achieve the mutually desired results," warns Greenstein. "They spent a lot of money on ads, but they were Yiddish English documents translated by Google: indifferent to the functioning of Yiddish, jargon, what is the right way to say things.
Although he heads the Borough Park Jewish Council, Greenstein says he did not receive a single call asking him to summon group leaders, yeshiva leaders or rabbis.
"I could easily put that in place. That's what I did for other problems, "he says. "I received a phone call asking for a quote from the Mayor's office about the importance of vaccination, which I gave them. Just for the press, they reached out, but not to really work with me and the community. I believe this is the only way to have an impact. "
In addition, there is an "antagonistic relationship" that has existed for years between health officials and the Orthodox Jewish community, which requires increased sensitivity.
"They are well-intentioned, I really do," says Greenstein about the authorities. "But this is not the approach that will achieve the desired results. I think the most important thing is that city officials work with us on a plan [of] how we could include health officials, doctors and rabbis sitting around the table with community leaders.
"Let's do it together, let's do it smartly," Greenstein adds. "Do not just run ineffective ads and then say," We did our job. "
For Josephs too, there is no doubt that working with the community is key to dealing with the epidemic. "I understand that New York City fears that it will go further and I think they are right to feel nervous," she says. "But it's clearly a community that does better with its own leadership than its outside leadership."
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