What does it cost to be Jewish in 2012?
Posted: January 25, 2012 | Author: Russell Collins | | Tags: austerity, community, demographics, JPR, poverty, society |1 Comment »
by Russell Collins
We are in the midst of a global economic downturn, unemployment has reached a 17 year high, suicide rates are rising and the effects of depression are rarely out of the news – but what does it mean for the Jewish community and are we doing enough in terms of prevention or tackling the consequences?
Poverty within the UK Jewish community
In 2011, the Institute for Jewish Policy Research (JPR) published two reports focusing on Jewish community demographics and child poverty (here and here). Both reports concluded that the issue of child poverty in the British Jewish community has not been investigated in any depth in recent decades and thus little reliable quantitative or qualitative data exists. As expected, the data that does exist shows that the situation is more critical in Haredi communities. According to one report, almost 50% of families could not afford a holiday for their children, 30% could not give their children any pocket money and 15% of children go without new clothes. We also know that the Haredi community has developed its own culturally specific strategies, tactics and initiatives to reduce the impact of poverty within their community. For example, Gemachim are prevalent and play an important role in sharing and distributing goods and supporting the financially vulnerable (although they do little to prevent poverty in the first place).
Common expectations and perceptions hold that Jewish poverty is not a significant issue outside the Haredi community. It is worth restating however that there has never been a full investigation and there is no single Jewish organisation or charity that deals with the causes or consequences of financial difficulties amongst Jewish families. Where the data does exist, it shows some interesting findings that dispel the myth that poverty does not affect the Jewish community. Eligibility for free school meals is a key proxy indicator for child poverty, with the average rate across the country around the 15% mark. Unsurprisingly, the rates within most Jewish primary and secondary schools fall significantly below this level but two large schools appear to be exceptions to this rule. JFS in Brent stands at 9.6%, whilst eligibility in Clore Tikva in Redbridge is even higher at 15.8% (2010 figures). The situation at Clore Tikva is particularly interesting as further findings reveal that Jewish child poverty is at its most severe in Redbridge (incl more single parent households and lower educational attainment), although it should be noted that in comparison with the rest of the UK, these issues are not particularly notable.
JPR conclude that there are quite clearly small pockets of child poverty amongst the non Haredi Jewish community. They also conclude that there might also be specific features of Jewish poverty due to the inequalities in relation to the relative wealth of the Jewish community, which would not be so prominent amongst less prosperous communities. Consequently, we may also assume that reported levels of financial difficulty are lower than actual levels due to the associated social stigma.
A squeezed middle ground
Whilst studies into child poverty are undoubtedly important, we should not look away from the fact that the current economic climate is affecting large swathes of society, across all social classes and geographies. Unemployment levels across the country are rising and the Jewish community will not be immune. Graduate unemployment is also rising, which poses a particular problem for the Jewish community where university attendance is higher than average.
We should also not overlook the fact that Jewish life can be costly. Jewish weddings, Bar/ Bat Mitzvahs and other simchas are notoriously expensive and it is oft reported that families have to take out significant loans or borrow money from family. Anecdotal evidence suggests that more and more people are opting for ‘non offensive’ catering (fish and vegetarian) in order to avoid the cost of kosher catering. Synagogue membership fees remains high and ever since the ‘JFS’ case, membership has been essential and unavoidable for families looking to gain places for the children in Jewish schools. Whilst subsidies are clearly provided on a case by case basis, it is difficult to ascertain the general affordability of synagogue membership or the value for money that it represents.
Likewise, organised Israel ‘experiences’ remain a key rite of passage for Jewish teenagers although one in four 16 year olds participating in Israel Tour receives some form of financial support, with many receiving a full bursary from the UJIA. Furthermore, when university fees increase up to threefold in September 2012, the demand for financial support for Tour and Gap Year programmes will likely rise alongside.
Of course, most of these things are not necessities and on the surface they pale into insignificance when compared to real and acute poverty. What they do point to however, is the cost of leading a ‘normative’ Jewish life. Regardless of their relative significance, evidence suggests that issues arise when social norms become unattainable. Rising rates of stress, depression, suicide and domestic violence have all been linked to unemployment and financial difficulties – and are not unknown to the Jewish community, particularly as these issues often remain taboo and stigmatised. As we have seen recently in the case of famous footballers, wealth and success alone offer little protection.
The communal response
Although we are in the middle of the worst financial crisis for generations, you wouldn’t believe it if you only read the Jewish Chronicle and gazed at centre page shoots of glitzy charity balls and barmitzvahs ‘to die for’. It appears that our communal media is failing to give a voice to those within our community who are struggling to maintain this ‘idealised’ Jewish family life. Of course, other narratives do exist within the ‘Jewish tradition’. With the propensity of social media and sharing technologies, it is surely worth exploring the potential to rethink gemachim for the non-Haredi community.
What seems clear is that a normative Jewish life, especially in London, does not come cheap. Our communal structures fundamentally require expensive membership costs and extensive fundraising activities to operate. We have to ask whether it is sustainable for major synagogue bodies (and other communal institutions) to remain tied to an operating model that requires significant capital investment and operating costs.
At this stage it is not known to what extent communal representative bodies (primarily the Board of Deputies and the Jewish Leadership Council) are debating, discussing or even thinking about how austerity will affect our community. Of course, they are rightly concerned about the impact on our communal organisations and on charitable giving – but what about the impact on individuals who are struggling or on Jewish families who increasingly have to make tough decisions?
As the economic downturn worsens and family purse strings tighten, there is a real risk of creating a two tier community. Whilst subsidies for communal activities are often available on request, those that require them may perceive themselves as the ‘have nots’ in comparison to their wealthier neighbours. In these circumstances, we must ask what the impact is on perceptions of communal ‘worth’? Along similar lines, it would also be interesting to understand the relationship between financial circumstances and communal participation and assimilation rates. The flourishing of non-institutional, grassroots Judaism potentially provides an alternative model and it is no surprise that it is a ‘hot topic’ amongst Jewish leaders as well as activists.
The inability to ‘keep up’ with perceptions of normative Jewish life may lead to increased debt but, more seriously, it may also lead to personal and emotional difficulties that impact on health and wellbeing. For those families and individuals who are struggling, economic recovery requires more than financial support. Synagogues and Rabbis undoubtedly provide a high level of pastoral care but is the community as a whole doing enough to provide emotional (and spiritual) support in a holistic, sustained and co-ordinated manner? Organisations such as The Jewish Association For Mental Illness (JAMI) play a key role in supporting some of the most vulnerable Jewish people and, in these circumstances, it is vital that a comprehensive needs assessment is conducted across the Jewish community. Indeed, in a global economic downturn that is having a significant effect on charities and the civic sector, we must ask ourselves to what extent we will be able to meet a potential increase in demand within our community?
Ultimately, however, we just don’t know the extent of poverty within the Jewish community, or the impact of austerity. With the publication of the 2011 census data, Jewish policy makers and researchers will be armed with the information to conduct rigorous investigations into this area. Later in 2012, JPR will conduct the first national survey of British Jewry for 17 years and it is vitally important that such initiatives are carried out and co-ordinated across the community. It is therefore encouraging that the JPR survey is supported and funded by communal bodies such as the Pears Foundation and UJIA, as well as leading Jewish charities such as Nightingale, Norwood and Jewish Care.
Conclusion – rethinking communal ‘value’
In these days of economic uncertainty, it is increasingly important that we value the ability of every individual to make a unique contribution to our community, regardless of their financial ability. For this reason and for many others, it is time that we shifted the narrative away from the normative, idealised ‘wealthy Jew’. Mishnah Sanhedrin (4:5) says that humans make coins from the same mould and they all come out the same. God, however, makes humans each from the same mould as the first human, yet each of us is unique. Particularly in the current economic climate, we would be wise to remember that our community is not built on money alone but on the things that money can never buy – minyan (participation/ being counted), chesed (good deeds) and ruach (spirit and energy).