I just received this letter today. It is a demand that I remove a post regarding an article that appeared in the Jerusalem Post about the child abuse scandal in Nachlaot. This is an example of the pressure that happens in the Orthodox community regarding discussing of child abuse. Anonymous letters, anonymous phone calls etc.
=====================He masterminded systematic rape of over 100 kids :The nightmare of Nachlaot
Dear Rabbi,I recently went through your blogs on Nachlaot and see that you are not one of the people who have been irrationally pushing the witch hunt that has been going on in Nachlaot. Since your blog comes up every time a search is done on Nachlaot abuse, I assumed you were one of the many inciters. In this I apologize. However, I will take you to task on the article you did print from the Jerusalem Post. I am not sure for what purpose you posted it. Perhaps you didn't have any better thing to post that day. In any case, the fact that you took the effort to give validity to an article from the JP that is based on lies and contains mostly lies is not forgivable. (Every one is judged according to who they are.) Therefore, since you have involved yourself in outright Motzie Shem Ra(everyone knows who S is), and chose to give the validity of the Torah to these lies by posting them on your blog as a truth, it is only right that you should want to correct the ill truths that you presented as truth.
There is several reasons why you would want to do this. A. Many innocent lives have been destroyed. The only way to correct that is to expose the lies and establish the truth. B. As long as the children are being treated based on lies, they will never get better. 1. Many of the children that are in treatment may not have been abused. 2. And if they were abused, it is not by the people they are claiming to have abused them. 3. The people that are abusing them are still getting away with it, i.e. brothers, Rebbis or whoever might actually have access to them. C. Several people that are in jail very well may be innocent. D. All the other reasons stated in the letters of the Rabbis that say it much more eloquently than I do.
Therefore, it is imperative that you do what you can do to straighten out this situation. To stand up in the name of truth.
Having been falsely accused, basically ostracized from the Jewish community, the Shechina cries.
One of the MANY falsely accused of Nachlaot.
The links lead to a blog of someone who is accused of being involved in the abuse there. Is this the same author of the letter?
ReplyDeleteRegarding your statement: "This is an example of the pressure that happens in the Orthodox community regarding discussing of child abuse. Anonymous letters, anonymous phone calls etc."
ReplyDeleteActually, this is an example of what happens when someone comes to defend innocent people who have been falsely accused of pedophilia. It is an uphill battle to even consider that someone that has been accused could possibly be innocent. Even in the case of Nachlaot where over 40 people have been accused, not to mention the other atrocious acts that have occurred there directly or indirectly because of the people who are behind the original accusations.
As stated in my letter, I am not denying that molestation went on. However, as long as the fairy tale of a pedophile ring is perpetuated and all the other lies, there will not be a resolution to the problem.
If a respected Rabbi is afraid to attach his name to his letter because 'There is no fear of G-d in this place', how much more so am I afraid to post my name as an accused pedophile.
I am more than ready to discuss this issue with anyone that is truly interested in the truth. However, all I have found so far is a mob mentality and people out for blood.
One of the falsely Accused of Nachlaot
Instead of suddenly popping up and issuing demands that I remove an article from the Jerusalem post - it might be worth your while to do something constructive. You don't seem to understand that your letter and demands really are not helping your cause - but actually contribute to the hysterical atmosphere that now exists.
DeleteA much more constructive contribution would be for you to write a guest post - explaining your perspective. Giving some basic information such as 1) what crimes were committed 2) was it organized abuse 3) how many people were accused and why 4) what evidence was used 4) how many people were actually arrested and charged 5) what constructive step can you suggest to resolve the present situation 6) what lessons do you feel should be learned
This offer is not limited to you but is available to anyone who can help improve the situation.
You say you are more then interested in discussing the truth with someone who is interested in the truth. Pleas!, go ahead, I do want to hear the truth. The original letter you wrote though, you realize wasn't really explaining anything, just simply isnsiting that you are innocent. I beleive you too can understand that no thinking individual who takes that letter and takes the knowledge that pp were convicted after investigation was done, will come to the conclusion that someone who is convicted is inncocent. You do need to explain what really happened here. And if there is this possiblity that convicted individuals are in fact innocent, I surely do want to know about that. But just big sounding statements of the Shcinah crying, childrent still getting hurt and not healing, ture perpetrators getting away, innocent pp suffering, doesn't really say anything, so why should I beleive you?
DeleteYou are welcome to come to my blog and see whatever information I posted there. http://nachlaotchildabuse.blogspot.com/2012/06/after-months-of-posting-articles-on.html
Deletenext they will stalk your children, vandalize your house and car and other threats of bodily harm and violence against you and your family.
ReplyDeletePut security cameras around your house, they are not very expensive and can be installed with remotes. Put a dashcam in your car which is plugged into your car battery and records 24/7. Carry a pen camera or other security device when you go out.
I wish I had done this when the threats first began and not waited.
I think it would be helpful to educate the hamon am how to read such letters. Meaning, by analyzing the letter one sees that all the writer is doing is using words that tend to make impressions on us, without saying anything substantial. Words like, "the Schinah cries...." or "innocent lives have been ruined," but no substantial evidence is being given for them. Also claiming children weren't abused are claiming they were abused, and if they were abused it wasn't even by these guy that are being made responsible, and they are still being abused....... This all points to an individual whose aim is to say I'm innocent, without doing anything to proove it.
ReplyDeleteA community that instead of rooting out the molesters and helping put them in prison, protects the molesters and tries to cover their actions up, will suffer periodically from false accusations.
ReplyDeleteBut a community that quickly reports abuse to the authorities, and that cooperates with the police investigation, and that encourages victims to testify in court against their abusers, will suffer much less from false accusations.