Bad fences make bad neighbors

16.04.2011                      12.Nisan, 5771

Nachbarschaft:

Bad fences make bad neighbors

The separation fence erected recently in a Jerusalem playground serving Haredi and secular children didn't last long, but it exemplified the growing tensions between two groups with very different values and lifestyles.

It's a gloomy sight, located in Jerusalem's Kiryat Hayovel neighborhood. About three weeks ago, a separation fence went up, in the yard of a nursery school, with the purpose of separating ultra-Orthodox and secular children.
The school is in the backyard of one of the most impoverished areas in the city, and looks out on looming blocks of gray concrete, with row upon row of narrow, barred windows. The air conditioners, and the lines stretched between the bars, on which hang clothing and blankets, complete the whole, unappealing picture….