Letters
Jews have reasons to oppose the eruv
Regarding the “Statement of principles regarding civil discourse” (November 10) — while I totally agree about the need for high standards of discourse and kindness, the onus should not be put on the opponents of the eruv without providing the reasons behind their feelings, which is not necessarily anti-Semitism. That’s especially true since some of the residents are Jews. There is real cause for concern about the eruv, based on the state of the towns and schools in Rockland County.
The public schools especially have suffered tremendously, and the children who need the most help have been hurt the most. Budgets have been turned down and arts, physical education, libraries, and so on have suffered. Budgets have been rejected because the religious Jewish community does not send their children to the public schools and so votes no to the budgets. Towns have suffered due to not enough property taxes being collected, due to homes being designated as “religious institutions.”
We know anti-Semitism exists; however, please be mindful to both sides of a story. It would be good to hear from the members of the Jewish community who have very real concerns about their communities.
Sandra Kleinman
Old Tappan
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