Anti-Semitism and Harassment in St. Louis

First it was 'Hit a Jew Day', now it seems like you can't even live in a University City ghetto with out being harassed for being ultra-Orthodox

According to this story, being reported in local news, there have been about nine incidents involving slurs and one case of a family being egged.

Now, while it may be incredibly ironic to egg pro-lifers at an abortion rally, throwing eggs at the observant isn't really that ironic, or fun, or permissible.

Sure, in Israel there are occasionally bands of ultra-orthodox who consider themselves the 'modesty police' and use a little violence here and there to force their beliefs on others, but that is the Middle East, where we expect barbaric behavior, strange customs, and the triumph of faith over logic.

But right here in our back yard?

When the 'Hit a Jew Day' story broke, it focused on a school which had an extremely small number of Jews. This newest report focuses on the University City area, which is ground zero for Frum (religious) Jews in St. Louis.

An interesting question is whether these incidents are related to the recent economic distress.

There are myths abound that the whole collapse was caused by Jews lending money to poor African-Americans, or that Lehman transferred several billion dollars to Israel just before declaring bankruptcy.

Maybe people are just getting ansy. Its always to pick on Jews, especially the religious ones that you can pick out of a crowd.

Maybe I'm under-reacting, after-all, the ADL treats every incident incredibly seriously, why shouldn't I?

Or perhaps I'm just skeptical that these issues somehow represent a shift in the social fabric.

Time will tell on this one, but in the meantime, perhaps we should start up local Beitar groups. Shmirah duty anyone?