MK Erol Margolis (Labor) gets today's Facebook Status of the Day award!

(translation after the images)


the status was accompanied by the following picture:

Translation:

Haredim are parasites! They don't want to work and are living off our backs! They are all the same. Just learn and no work. They are our taxes, ours! We are supporting them!!
.
.
.
.
No, I really do not think that.

Expressions of this type repel me. But how many times in our lives have we judged people based on their external appearance or ethnic connection? How many times have we developed hatred just based on stereotypes?

I met these people (in the picture) today. They all studied. They are all certified engineers. They all dream about integrating into the hi-tech world. They all want to work and support their families respectably.

It seems though that it is a problem to be a haredi in the secular work world, and even more so in hi-tech. They send resumes and employers can deduce from the name, number of kids and type of education that they are haredim, and then they do not invite them in for an interview. And if they do get an interview, their appearance deters the employers. And if they succeed in landing the job, they get paid much less.

People look at them like cheap labor. It does not matter to anyone that these people learned just like everyone else, and some did national service or served in the IDF - they will always be "those Haredim". We do not see them as individuals, but as one glob of black. This is how we push away an entire population instead of making them an integral part of ours.

MK Amnon Cohen and I are heading a caucus for the employment of Haredim because we believe that together we can bring this population into the workforce. What they did in Intel can be done in many more companies. The wisdom is to believe in people and in their abilities, and to look past the beard, the color or the gender.