A Life Apart: Hasidism in America

This movie was an amazing look at Hasidism, the extreme Jewish group that behave and dress in a rather bizarre manner. The movie reminded me of Jesus Camp, a horror documentary about the indoctrination of Christian children. A Life Apart is similar in the respect that it involves indoctrination of vulnerable Jewish children. This branch of Judaism can only be considered an anachronism and projects an exclusivity that is rather frightening. The manner in which they lived, particularly in Eastern Europe, invited persecution.

Like most religions, Hasidism is patriarchal and women are relegated to a role of being essentially baby machines. The average family has ten children which results in an economic burden for most families. They have their own schools, and like all church schools, library books are rigidly censored. Members of this cult, and it is a cult, don't interact with other members of society and believe that they are superior to any other. The clothing worn by the men is dreadful as is the strange head-ware and they appear to have a fetish about beards and hair. Most of the men wear thick coke-bottle glasses.

I found the movie fascinating but these people are from another era. I find their society very similar to that of Islam a religion with which they are in constant conflict. I came away from this film feeling very sorry for the members trapped within it and particularly for the children. Very sad but an eye opener.