Q:
What advice can I give to a friend who sends his daughter to a co-ed yeshiva?
A:
Tell him that he should be like an Irishman or an Italian of forty years ago. Forty years ago, there wasn’t an Irishman or an Italian who would send his daughter to a co-ed public school. All the schools were segregated. Beyond elementary school, all the schools were segregated. The public schools, if you can still find old-time public school buildings, you’ll see as follows: Over one entrance built in brick, there’s a sign, “Boys.” The other entrance, built in brick, there’s a sign, “Girls.” So the boys went to the boys playground for recess time, girls went in the girls playground. That’s up to 13 years. In high school, they were separate entirely, in different parts of the city.
So we tell him, be like a gentile of 40 or 50 years ago. That’s not too much to expect of you. Or be like a Persian, be like Vashti. Like Vashti HaMalka who made a separate party for women. Be like a good decent goy.
The truth is, the liberal Jews of today, the Modern Orthodox are far beneath the old time goyim in very many ways.
(February 1984)
