The Slonimer chassidim offered to home school their daughters until the end of the year, and next year start their own privately funded school. The Court wanted to make a point and said that unless they sent their girls to the general school for the remainder of the school year they would be held in contempt of court. This could not happen in America where the parents would have had First Amendment rights.

If those who rush to voice their opinions about this issue would truly worry about world's reaction they should make it their business to READ FACTS. Before posting comments one that CARES Israel's image should be informed so that one's comments are not simply going to be used against Jews/Israel because of our own erroneous and uninformed statements.

The article by Hillel Fendel appearing in Israel National News explains that RACISM IS NOT THE ISSUE: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/138130

(Excerpt:) "Slonim Hassidim wish to continue the religious traditions of their fathers and rabbis, and educate their children in a school that adheres to particularly stringent religious standards.

They say that among their number are 27% Sephardim - proof that they do not discriminate against them."

And here: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/138121

"Hareidi-religious sources emphasize that the issue is not one of ethnic discrimination, but rather a question of religious observance. “If there is discrimination against Sephardim,” said hareidi spokesman Dudi Zilbershlag, “it has nothing to do with the city of Emanuel. The school there is divided along religious lines, and even the parents in the ‘general’ stream want this separation to continue.”

Another article by Eli Stut: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/138127

"The issue is the Supreme Court ruling that forces Hassidic parents in the Shomron town of Emanuel to send their daughters to a school they believe does not meet their religious standards."

What ever happened to the belief that "We are one" ? Stop this foolish hypocrasy and come together in wisdom, understanding and peace. We are enriched and strengthened by our diversity; not weakened by it ! Respect and unity are imperative for our Jewish heritage to survive. It was baseless hatred that caused the destruction of the Second Temple; let's not add to the obstacles in the way of building the Third One!

What a shame! and we thought the segregation and discrimination between Sephardic and Ashkenaz (haredim) was only part of mistakes it took to build our country. It is really happening now! What a wrong timing, now in the midst of worldwide bashing of Israel, we are now only giving them more reason to hate us. This is what I call sin-at hinam. The least I expected to come from is from the haredim. I am an orthodox Sephardic Jew and am so disappointed.

I am also a mix of Sefardi and Ashkenaz and not Haredi and I know both types of communities.

The attitude of the Ashkenaz Haredi has NOTHING to do with racism. They are completely insulated and want to stay that way, the way they dress is also totally different too, they have no TV or movies or Internet access, they do not speak about certain subjects and as a people they tend to stay very untouched by much of the world's negative trends. That is not to say that the Sephardic people are not wonderful as well, but their attitude tends to be more embracing of the world's culture and their families are comfortable managing these trends. But did anyone realize that maybe the Ashkenaz families do not want to have to "manage" exposure of their daughters to these trends? What about parental rights? It's like forcing the AMISH people to mingle with other people. The Israeli court is secular and they know NOTHING about the inner rationale of the way these parents feel and the reality of raising children in the world today. Maybe the priority of keeping the brains of children free of complications is more important to these parents than worrying about the 'race' issue everyone is so busy about but which has NOTHING to do with this.

I think it's sad because now these two different traditions that coexist in a school environment without too much trouble may actually experience problems. This may be unintentional but really a stupid move to focus on a tiny school in a very tiny community of Emmanuel to create so much havoc. Sounds more like POLITICS of the left of Israel to me.

The Haredi community's protests over desegregation of the public schools in the West Bank falls on deaf ears in the US and other civilized countries. In the US, in the 1950s and 1960s, parents protested the admission of blacks to the public schools. The government enforced the desegregation by sending in troops and punishing the lawbreakers. Desegregation was finally achieved, but it was a long and hard-fought process. In the end, some of the most obstinate parents ended up creating "private" schools, often in church basements, and sending their white children there. Under US state laws, parents have the right to send their children to the schools of their choice (or to home school them), as long as the schooling meets the educational standards set by the different states.

The Haredi Jews are trying to force the government to provide segregated schools for their children. The clearly flies in the face of education in democratic, multi-ethnic countries. If the Haredi Jews want their children to be educated separately, it is their right to establish and fund their own schools. Perhaps, once these protestors realize what is involved in creating and funding private schools, they will change their stance.

Freedom of religion - The ultra orthodox sects are a burden to Israel and have to be dealt with properly and not for their votes!

I find it highly amusing how the international media has completely misrepresented and misinterpreted this story. The Israel-bashers are at a loss, they are eager to support any protest they perceive as being anti-Israel, and the Haredim have represented the situation to them as being a protest "for the right to educate our children as we wish" not as the racist, segregationist policy that it is.

I am part Sefardi, part Ashkenazi, lucky I am not Haredi what would I do, split myself in half?