Historium

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The Haredim: Israel’s Growing Political Power | Hasidic Jews

Documentary

Description

Israel’s Haredi population is growing rapidly, but political influence does not require a numerical majority. This short Historium video explores how demographics, religious institutions and disciplined political parties shape the Haredim’s role in Israel’s coalition system. The accompanying article examines population projections, military service, employment, education and the community’s varied relationship with Zionism. Not every Haredi is anti-Zionist, and the protests of groups such as Neturei Karta should not be treated as representative of the entire community. Soundtrack: Night in Jerusalem — Historium.

Historium research desk

Historical context

Israel’s Haredi population is growing at a pace unmatched by any other major group in the country. They are still far from a numerical majority, but demographics, disciplined political parties and Israel’s coalition system are giving them influence long before they could ever become one.

Read the companion article

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Transcript

Read the complete spoken text

EN transcript

This transcript follows the video’s narration. Read the companion article for dated sources, historical context and editorial corrections.

0:00 The Haredim are a Jewish
0:01 community that rejects the State
0:03 of Israel, and their population
0:05 is growing so fast that
0:07 they could soon become powerful
0:09 enough to determine who governs
0:11 the country.
0:12 They reject secularism.
0:15 Some are openly anti-Zionist.
0:17 Haredi families commonly have six
0:20 or seven children.
0:21 In many Haredi families, women
0:23 support the household financially, while
0:26 a large number of men
0:27 spend their lives outside the
0:29 workforce, devoted almost entirely to
0:32 religious study.
0:34 While even 18-year-old
0:36 Israeli women are required to
0:38 serve two years in the
0:39 military, almost no Haredi men
0:42 serve at all.
0:43 They have their own schools,
0:45 their own religious authorities, and
0:47 highly disciplined political parties.
0:50 Because Haredim already make up
0:52 roughly 15% of Israel's
0:54 population, they have become a
0:56 powerful force in Israeli politics.
0:59 Parties that want to form
1:00 a government often need Haredi
1:02 support.
1:03 In return, Haredi parties can
1:05 demand political concessions and special
1:08 exemptions.
1:09 Their exemption from military service,
1:12 combined with government financial support
1:14 for men who remain outside
1:16 the workforce, has already created
1:18 serious tensions between Haredim and
1:21 secular Israelis.
1:23 But here's the bigger question.
1:25 Israel is a country whose
1:27 economic and military strength depends
1:29 heavily on high technology.
1:32 So what happens if a
1:33 rapidly growing religious community, parts
1:36 of which even reject modern
1:38 technology, eventually gains enough political
1:41 power to reshape the country?
1:43 What would Israel become?
1:45 How would its relationship with
1:47 neighboring countries, and the United
1:49 States, change?
1:51 We'll explore all of these
1:53 questions in our upcoming Historium
1:55 documentary.

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