@Miller,
The ultra-orthodox Jewish sects are no more "sexist" in failing to ordain female rabbis than is the Catholic church in refusing to ordain female priests, or in wanting to retain nuns only as the brides of Christ. Both groups will cite religious reasons for these actions and decisions.
I'm not sure that "sexism" really applies to these religious groups. I don't think they should be judged by secular standards like "equality" in terms of civil rights. These religious groups are living by standards, norms, and rules, which are religiously based, and, therefore, quite separate and apart from the standards, moral authority, and civil rights laws of the secular world. I'm not sure the secular world has any right to tell these religious groups how they should be functioning and living, unless they break criminal laws.
And, it is important to remember that Israel is really a
secular state. Therefore, some of these ultra-orthodox sects, like the Haredi, are always going to be at odds with the secularism of the state, and some of the other ultra-orthodox sects are actually anti-Zionist, which definitely puts them at odds with the state. This may be a situation which is rather unique to Israel.
Off-hand I can't think of other religions, besides Judaism where one would find secular members, in fairly large numbers. In other religions, you identify as a member because of how you were religiously brought up or educated, or whether or not you observe the rituals and practices of the religion. That is not entirely the case with Judaism. One is considered Jewish by birth, if born to a Jewish mother, whether or not one ever had any religious education, or ever stepped foot into a synagogue, or had a bar mitzvah, etc.--a person is matrilineally a Jew by birth. Therefore, one can be a Jewish atheist or agnostic, one can be a secular (or ethnic) Jew, with no religious framework to one's life at all. Jews can feel connected by ethnic, historical, and cultural factors, having nothing at all to do with religious observance. The whole issue of Jewish identity is rather complex.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_is_a_Jew%3F
If one doesn't understand something of the nature of the clashes between secular Jews and ultra-orthodox Jews, the conflicts going on in Israel with the Haredi really don't make sense, or can easily be misinterpreted. The court ruling in Israel, regarding segregated schools, can be seen, by the Haredi, as the secular state slapping down, and interfering with, the religious beliefs and practices of their ultra-orthodox group, and that's why they protested in the streets.
The Haredi don't want their children even going to school with other children who have TVs in their homes, because TV violates their religious beliefs and practices--and that's one objection the Haredi have to the Sephardi/Mizrahi students being in the same classroom with their children, they don't want their children even indirectly exposed to such secular influences. These ultra-orthodox want to remain as insular and insulated from the secular world as possible. They do not want the form or nature of their religious practices, or those of their children, influenced by assimilation into the secular world, or even influenced by other forms of Judaism (as represented by the Sephardi).
I actually understood none of this before finding this thread. But, the topic peaked my curiosity, so I have been doing quite a bit of reading on the subject and the situation in Israel. I think I now have some idea of how complicated it all is.
The more liberal, and secular, Israeli media tend to portray the Haredi as being racist in wanting segregated schools, basing this on the fact that the Sephardi/Mizrahi students in these schools tend to be from Arab or African countries, and somewhat darker skinned. But, that's the view of a media which is biased toward a secular perspective, and it does ignore the very real religious differences between these groups. It is a somewhat negatively slanted view of the Haredi, which mirrors the larger ultra-orthodox/secular clashes going on in Israeli society.
After doing some reading, I'm not at all convinced that the Haredi are racist, I do think this school issue is more of a religious/ethnic conflict than one having to do with skin color. It is discrimination, but I suspect the Haredi probably discriminate against everyone who isn't a member of their group, and it has little or nothing to do with race. If they were in the U.S., they would likely run their own private schools and keep everyone else, besides Haredi, out. In Israel, the schools take money from the state, so the secular state can have a say in matters such as school segregation, and that's what those school protests were all about. This is a secular state/ultra-religious sect culture clash, rather than the state taking a stand against racism. Racism really doesn't seem to be the main issue.
From my reading, I also found that the Sephardi/Mizrahi are generally one of the most economically disadvantaged groups in Israel. They have tended to live in the poorer neighborhoods, have less advantaged schools, pursue higher education less frequently, work at poorer paying jobs, etc. Whether this has been the case because they are one of the more recent immigrant groups, or because their skins tend to be darker and they have been discriminated against based on racial factors, isn't all that clear. But, at least one writer I read, felt it was extremely hypocritical of the liberal media to brand the Haredi as being "racist", when they themselves have accepted the somewhat second class socio-economic status of the Sephardi/Mizrahi Jews in their midst. In other words, the Haredi are no more or less racist than anyone else in Israel when it comes to the perception and treatment of the Sephardi/Mizrahi. And the whole matter of discrimination in Israel is quite a controversial, and sometimes, heated topic.
I must say, I have really enjoyed this topic because it has motivated me to learn more about a culture I really didn't know all that well, and to try to understand the frictions between the groups that are sub-divisions of that culture. It is all very interesting. And the clashes and conflicts between the various types of Jews seem every bit as strong as the Israeli/Arab differences I have heard much more about.
