It is worse. Much, much, much worse. It’s not from today, this goes back at least 20 years ago when the brutality started and they took off the kid gloves to put on knuckle-brass ones. There have been instances where people were trampled by horses, thrown to the grown and stomped, whipped with sticks, kicked viciously in all parts of their body without rachamim, where women were hit, shoved and screamed at, where water cannons containing toxic substances were shot at men, women and children, where stun grenades were thrown at a woman and her children, where rubber bullets and stun grenades were thrown at crowds, where there has been systematic rounding up of Jews, infiltration into their homes, shuls and yeshivot. This coupled with the campaign of dehumanization that’s been ongoing in full hatred since 2020 when the media then got onboard with the propaganda machine reporting that the orthodox were spreading disease by not *wearing masks*.
Here is a breakdown of how this has manifested over the last several years:
1. Medicalized Dehumanization (The “Plague” Narrative)
Journalists and commentators described cities like Bnei Brak as “medieval plague cities” or “incubators of disease.”
Selective Outrage: While crowds gathered at beaches or protests in Tel Aviv, the cameras remained fixed on Mea Shearim, creating a visual lie that the Haredim were the sole cause of national instability.
The “Science” Excuse: By framing the conflict as “Science vs. Religion,” the media allowed the public to feel intellectually superior while engaging in primal tribalism.
2. Economic Dehumanization (The “Parasite” Trope)
This is perhaps the most persistent and damaging narrative.
The “54 Billion” Myth: Media outlets have repeatedly cited inflated or dismantled figures regarding the “cost” of the Haredi community to the Israeli economy. This turns human beings into a “financial deficit” that needs to be “fixed.”
“Sucking the Marrow”: Language used by prominent politicians and broadcasters has often described the community as draining the lifeblood of the productive secular population, effectively stripping them of their human status and turning them into a “problem” to be managed.
3. Dehumanization through “Police Order”
Mt. Meron Incident (2024): Even after the tragedy, reports surfaced of police being told to “hit them so they won’t want to return for 50 years.” MKs have noted that the media incitement led many citizens and officers to view Haredim as “subhuman” or lacking human rights.
The “Other” Laws: There is a documented “dual system” of enforcement where Haredi protests are met with a level of violence and mass indictment that is rarely seen in other social sectors.
In the past 24 hours MK Lieberman has called the orthodox in Bnei Brak – mechablim – which means terrorists. This is the word given to the various groups such as PLO in those days, rogue assassins and Hamas. Not the narrative is shifting towards the orthodox in Bnei Brak. Those who can read the writing on the wall need to know exactly where this is heading.