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Eli Federman’s Op-Ed in the Forward: Ending the Culture of Silence

Forward

At the Passover Seder, we are supposed to ask questions about why things are done the way they are. Recently I asked some questions about the government-funded social service agency that serves my Jewish community in Brooklyn, the Crown Heights Jewish Community Council. Specifically, I questioned the policy that only allows men to vote for the council’s leaders. In public letters I argued that the policy might violate the Constitution (or at least civil rights statutes), and I cited various sources in support of my contention that there is no halachic reason for excluding women from voting in elections for a secular organization.

The New York Times reported on the story, and within hours of the article appearing online heated debates were breaking out on news sites that serve the Crown Heights community. Some online commenters expressed support for my position, while others vigorously disagreed with me. This is to be expected and reflects the diversity of opinion within my community. (Indeed, this issue has been the topic of debate within our community for some time, a discussion that the Forward reported on in a blog post last year.)

Some commenters, however, took a more troubling position. They labeled my actions a chilul Hashem, a public desecration of God’s name, arguing that by reporting on this policy the Times article had cast the community in an unfavorable light.

The fact that some in the community viewed the broadcast to the wider world of this male-only voting rule as a chilul Hashem suggests that they recognize the injustice in the policy. Otherwise, what is there to be ashamed of? Why else would they feel threatened by seeing it reported by the newspaper? And if in fact the policy is shameful, then why aren’t these commenters lobbying to change it?

But their reaction highlights a much larger problem facing my community: a culture of secrecy that all too often represses discussion of important issues for fear that the outside world will hear. This is a problem for many segments of the Orthodox and Hasidic worlds, with often profoundly destructive consequences.

I was accused of a chilul Hashem for raising questions about a nonprofit organization’s bylaws. But the same accusation can be hurled at those who call attention to abuse or domestic violence within religious Jewish communities. Members of these communities are paying a terrible price for a culture of silence that prevents us from openly and honestly confronting our problems.

Of course, I am well aware of the negative stereotypes that exist regarding the religious Jewish community, such as the notion that we are reactionary. We saw these prejudices in some of the comments that were posted in response to the Times article. So I can sympathize with anxieties about airing our dirty laundry.

But the best proof that such stereotypes are untrue is when we are able to question policies and make appropriate changes, when members of the community are not afraid to express dissenting viewpoints — and are able to express those viewpoints as active members of the community. The only disgrace is acting as if we have something to hide.

Last December when the Crown Heights rabbinic court issued a decree prohibiting community members from speaking directly with the police or media regarding grievances related to law enforcement, there was an outpouring of community outrage. This suggests that the code of silence is not something that is endemic to our community.

I love my Hasidic community and its culture. I believe that the culture of silence is something that is imposed on our community by those who have something to gain by keeping secrets.

In Crown Heights we are rightly proud of our community and its traditions. That’s why we welcome those from the outside to come to our community and learn, and that’s why many of us go out into the far corners of the world to spread yidishkayt. We reach out to all Jews, as well as to the non-Jewish world, because we have profound wisdom to share. We, of all people, should have the confidence to know that we should have nothing to hide.

Eliyahu Federman is an executive at an e-commerce company. He is a graduate of the City University of New York School of Law, where he served as an executive editor of the law review.

[This article is from the Jewish Daily Forward]

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57 Comments

  • Long Time CH-er

    Kudos Mr. Federman for standing up for what you believe in. Don’t be nispal from the naysayers.

  • ...

    so now he is justifying going to the ny times by going to the forward interesting…

  • Friend of Eli

    Eli, you are losing it. If it should be run in a secular manner, then why not woman also be allowed to run to be rosh[et] hakahol? Perhaps your premise that women should be included to vote is valid, but are you arguing that it would be unconstitutional for allowing only men to be the next Zaki Tamir? Or perhaps a Baptist black should be allowed to run for vaad hakahol?

    Lets not make this into a legal matter of what would Thomas Jefferson have wanted, rather we must think what would the Rebbe have wanted. That is for Rabbonim to decide and not us because daas baal habatim hepech daas Torah.

    I actually like you Eli, and believe your talents have what to offer. yet please utilize your writing talents to defend us (like when the vaad hakahol tried to block the members of the community from exposing the NYPD to the media), but please do not to go the media preemptively on the offensive.

  • Levi

    Not everything that’s true must be said
    “The fact that some in the community viewed the broadcast to the wider world of this male-only voting rule as a chilul Hashem suggests that they recognize the injustice in the policy.”
    Without entering the details of the discussion, this argument is outright wrong.
    There are many things in our community that have very strong reason, yet if they were to be reported in any newspaper “as is”, they would seem peculiar and wrong.
    Your typical goy reading that report, without any understanding of the Frum and Chabad standards, would find it strange, just as strange as he finds your beard and Yarmulka.

  • Everyone relax

    everyone just calm down. this mitigates any potential damages. if you actually read what he wrote you would see it reflects positively on the community…

  • Ich Mein

    Bring it on.

    Let the votes taking place in Crown Heights be regulated by Govt agencies. No more fraudulent tactics and sleight of hand.

  • law

    the community council gets government funds for what they do and according to the law you arent allowed to allow men to vote and no women and if they do only allow men to vote and the government gets a wind of this they can be in deep trouble so women should have a say in the voting and i support eli federman all the way.

  • cma

    I agree with his principle but vigorously disagree with his methods. And I don’t think it takes a genius to figure out that the Rebbe would not agree with his methods either. This is self-promotion at any cost…

  • BT SYNDROME

    Fedrman writes: “I was accused of a chilul Hashem for raising questions about a nonprofit organization’s bylaws. But the same accusation can be hurled at those who call attention to abuse or domestic violence within religious Jewish communities. Members of these communities are paying a terrible price for a culture of silence that prevents us from openly and honestly confronting our problems.”

    Are you seriously equating the crime of abuse to your interpretation of Chassidic women’s rights?

    No sane individual would argue that the Vaad and its bylaws are in need of reform. but comon… dont join a community and try to change it.
    the times? the forward! THE FORWARD?!??!?!?!?!? the roitzchim who waged war on the Rubashkin family? you would dare provide them with material for them to level more harm on the community?

    Will you stop at nothing in your pursuit of self-promotion and “acceptance,” as a “Bal Habbos??”

    STOP IT! Grow up!
    You know darn well why women should not vote as a rule in the Kehila’s elections (except for cases such as almonos or gerushos.). and if you believe they should then discuss it in a proper forum… the NY times is a place you went to for recognition. And the Forward is a place you went to for further attrition.

  • Huh?

    Huh? A “Baptist black”? What does that reference have to do with ANYTHING, except perhaps imply the writer’s inclination to a prejudice toward an African American of the Baptist faith? Can the writer explain?

  • What-s the deal?

    So why is it a problem to ask a question in another forum, if presenting it in the Forward did not lead to healthy conversation,if the writer presents the situation correctly? I agree with him that if there is nothing to be ashamed of, then why not offer a non-defensive explanation in an intelligently expressed manner and be done with it? Or is the writer’s intention to grandstand, for some reason? Did he try to converse with actual people who could have discussed the issue ? Did he research the reasons behind the practice? (or in his view, the NONpractice).Is it possible to hold a meeting in the community to discuss this issue? How are other issues dealt with when there are questions or concerns? Do people feel that there is no place to express a feeling about a particular practice? Is it a noncommunicative community? What about a peaceful,loving, intelligent, compassionate conversation open to all who would like to talk about it?

  • CHEREM now!

    Nice. First the Times, now the Backward. Who’s next, Eli? Al-Jazeera?

  • IT IS NOT YOUR JEWISH COMMUNITY

    Eli, this is NOT your Jewish community. You werent born into it and you were not called in. You are an outsider and a troublemaker at that!!

  • dad rules

    well said regardless as he said if its dirty laundry FIX IT! end of story. Kudos!

  • Let My People Go

    Good job Eli. Let My people go applies in Crown Heights too. I suggest that commentators #1 and #17 and their ilk get off their high horses before they are washed away by the tides of freedom.

  • DR. LEVI A. REITER

    ELI,

    WE DO NOT KNOW EACHOTHER, BUT I’M SURE AS A MEMBER OF THE CROWNHEIGHTS COMMUNITY YOU ARE WELL AWARE THAT WE HAVE RABBONIM– WHETHER OR NOT THEY DO OR DO NOT GET ALONG, WHETHER YOU DO OR DO NOT AGREE WITH THEIR POSITION, AND SO ON… NEVERTHELESS THE RABBONIM ARE HERE IN ORDER TO “HEAR” SHAALOS THAT COVER THE SPECTRUM OF ACTIVITIES IN A JEWISH COMMUNITY. THE EXISTENCE OF PROBLEMS WITHIN A BEIS DIN DOES NOT FREE AN INDIVIDUAL TO DECIDE FOR HIMSELF WHETHER A CONTROVERSIAL MATTER THAT IMPACTS THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY IS APPROPRIATE– HALACHICA NOT WITHSTANDING. THAT IS WHY THE REBBE DEMANDED THAT WE CONSULT SPECIFICALLY “CHASSIDISHE RABBONIM OF CHABAD”– WHO UNDERSTAND THE “CHASSIDIC” IMPLICATIONS OF ONE’S ACTIONS. A NON-CHASSIDIC ROV WOULD NOT DO, NOR WOULD A LAYMAN COSULTING A SHULCHAN ARUCH SUFFICE.

    IF YOU ARE A CHABAD CHASSIDIC JEW– AS YOU HAVE STATED– YOU SHOULD HAVE FOLLOWED YOUR OWN REBBE’S DIRECTIVE. IN OTHER WORDS, YOU SHOULD HAVE CONSULTED WITH THE ELECTED RABBONIM PRIOR TO LAUNCHING ANY LEGALISTIC HEROICS THAT YOU MAY FEEL ARE NOBEL AND JUST. DID YOU?

  • Dan

    This fella is ,obviously, neither a Chasid nor a member of this community. His gratuitous attack on the way business is conducted here is a lot of smoke by a blowhard who feels that he hasn’t gotten enough attention. Give the little tyke a lollypop and he’ll go away.

  • To #12

    Why should women “not vote as a rule in the Kehila’s elections”?
    And why should Eli know this “darn well”?
    And please explain how this crusade would be Eli’s easiest road toward gaining ““acceptance,” as a “Bal Habbos””, since you assert this to be his ultimate motivation.
    If you elaborated on your initial question of “Are you seriously equating the crime of abuse to your interpretation of Chassidic women’s rights?” instead of digressing to a tirade of uncorroborated claims — betraying a slew of fallacies — you would appear much more intelligent.

    To #12: STOP IT! Grow up!

  • Agree with Federman

    I fully agree with this younger man. He makes a great point. Every great idea is ignored attacked and then ultimately accepted ….

  • Mendy Hecht

    Mr. Federman is right on several key points of his; the only issue is not whether he is right but whether he should have gone to the media, which, as we have seen, love few things more than a good and juicy Orthodox-bashing story that fits their narrative that the Orthodox are just a bunch of backwards Neanderthals. The chilul Hashem here is not the issues he has raised but the fact that if you go to the Times or the Forward, you’re pretty much guaranteed a bad story even if they’re writing about Shimon Waronker or someone/something that makes us look good–leave it to them to give it a negative spin.

  • GO AWAY

    we all know who you are, we know why you are running to the papers. you are trying to make a name for yourself, but why do we have to suffer, pick on someone else.

  • To #24

    Read the Forward article. Federman himself wrote it. I think it’s positive…
    Also acceding to the Times piece he has been Raising this issue since 2009. Do you really think it would change without external pressure?

  • Wall street journal

    i can’t wait to buy the wall street journal to find out why he went to the forward explaining why he went to the NYT

  • To 13 (Huh?)

    I most certainly can explain. Eli Federman’s premise of women having the right to vote was because we have to have the secular election standards govern the kehila’s voting practices. So what I’ve written was; if that is the standards we must follow, then why can’t my next door neighbor, Mr. Jerome Jenkins, a nice gentlemaan who just happens to be a baptist, run to be the next chairman of the Vaad Hakahol? According to Federman, because public funds are earmarked to the Vaad, they would be guilty of discrimination if they don’t allow him to run.

    And please stop with the childish racism tactic to try to discredit me when I may be the most Black loving man in Crown Heights, for all you know. We are trying to have an adult discussion and you are welcome to join in of course, but please address my point.

    Thank you.

  • It Is A Chilul Hashem

    There should be no silence when it comes to abuse. Lives of children or wives could be at risk. Comparing this to the question over voting for the Community Council is outrageous.

    The issue is simple, how do we as a community debate issues. What are the acceptable limits of that debate. There may be value is his contention in voting should be extended to woman for the CJCC elections. But his approach is flawed.

    There is no question that by putting this on the pages of the Times and now the Forward he has created a Chilul Hashem. Many of the readers look negatively towards Frum Jews and Chassidim. Making this a public issue could cause some of them to look in a negative way towards Yiddiskiet, or to question if they should walk into a Chabad Center.

    There is a more interesting question. If he was gaining support for his position in the community why go to the secular media. If he lacked that support why use elements outside the community to impose their value system.

    While I tend to agree with his position I find his methods an anathema.

  • Reiter hats off

    Kol Hakovod to DR REITER for stating the truth so beautifully. SHAME ON FEDERMAN

  • Who really supports him?

    I think all the comments in support are being posted by his family. I challenge 5 people who support him to write their names.

    (You just need to here what people are saying in shul to know that everybody is against him – so there is no need for any of the negative to sign their posts)

  • Moshe

    Why stop with women’s suffrage? What about the right to vote for the other residents of Crown Heights?

  • Sosha

    Oh, Eli, Eli, Eli….
    How sad!
    You’ve taken a just cause, and used it to make yourself well known in the community. (Who ever heard of Eli Federman a half year ago??)
    So yes, the cause is a righteous one and needs to be addressed.
    And you did. Look at all the discussion you’ve generated. But, how sad that the discussion is pramily about YOU. It’s hardly about the cause of women’s rights at all. In fact, no one is any better informed today than they were before you went to the Times. But we sure as heck are very, very, very well informed about YOU.

    So, prove yourself. You’ve got the name now, and the fame. Stop grandstanding. Do some real work, and let us know what you’ve uncovered, what can be done, who is the one person or group who has the power. In other words, start informing the community about the real issue. Have the community discussing the real issue. Not YOU.

  • Reuven

    Number 33 said “everybody is against him.”

    Well, that solves the problem.

    If “everybody” is against him, then half of everybody is women—and if women are against having the right to vote, then all they have to do is…not vote.

    Maybe by “everybody” you mean only the men. It reminds me of whites in the south saying that they didn’t understand what was wrong with segregation since “Everybody was happy.”

  • Chaimkay

    Who cares if it’s the Ny times or forward. Why are we being so insular? Everyone is acting like a pogrom is aroun the corner. I’m more concerned about our secrets being a chilul hashem then our expsures. This issue was already in the press. Why don’t people take Federmans position for what it is and deal with the merits of his claims? These negative comments are immature and based on a very paranoid mentality….

  • Bergerqueen

    The negative comments written about Mr. Federman were disheartening. Talk about a Chilul Hashem. You dont’ even realize how far you have fallen away from Torah true Judaism. Never consider eating treif but desimating a man and his family?
    BTW,this issue of Tzinut is interesting. The Chabad woman vote in secular, general elections? Why is the issue of Tzniut not relevant then? Maybe because you can’t deliver to your constituency the numbers if only the males vote. Interesting how Tzniut is flexible then.

  • Karen Berger

    To Who Really Supports Him.
    Karen Berger really supports him.
    An Orthodox Jewish Woman Supports him.
    To Who Really Supports Him:
    Maybe those who speak in shul about this issue better fine tune their prayers.

  • heightser

    what does his mother Chedvi think about this? She’s from kfar chabad, do the women vote there?

  • CHLEAKS.COM

    What about the millions being stolen from the people of Crown Heights every year by the Crown Heights Jewish Community Council Inc. (CHJCC) a.k.a. Sperlin Family, Spritzer, Spielman, Hendel etc…?

    Don’t be a dog, be informed

    CHLEAKS.COM

  • Not that convinced....

    To number 33
    I think all the comments in support are being posted by one or two haters. I challenge 5 people who are against him to write their names.

    (You just need to hear what people are saying in shul to know that everybody is supporting him – so there is no need for any of the supportive to sign their posts)

  • Dear Dr. Reiter

    Please DO NOT POST IN CAPS!!! It means you’re shouting (which I suppose fits, considering your profession!!) & it is very difficult to read what are probably very important & nicely phrased thoughts.

    Thank you,

    a patient

  • Dov H.

    All of you guys should just calm down and stop being so hostile to different points of view! discussion is healthy.

    I think all these hostile comments are indicative of what’s wrong with our community. Narrow mindedness just pushes the younger generation to cast off and leave this community’s way of life.

    Bottom line: BE TOLERANT, PUSH TOO HARD AND YOU LOSE!

  • Mendy Hecht

    To #43: I’m against what he did (not him per se, and specifically, against going to the mainstream media to push this issue) and have no problem using my name. The fact remains that women who have no husband to express their voice, have no voice and no say in their community. Should they get to vote because of that? I don’t know. Maybe there should be a rule allowing an exception for divorcees and widows. I think that is something for the rabbonim to decide and for the community to push for to the rabbonim, if enough of a community movement is built up for that cause. Mr. Federman should have pushed harder in that direction, not in the direction of the Times and the Forward.

    The real issue is the culture of silence which makes people terrified of having an opinion in public, as if that’s somehow a bad thing. (Speaking of names, where’s yours?) Al tifrosh min hatzibur is one thing, but that doesn’t mean you can’t say what you think.

  • Vantage Point

    To #33, Of course you are entitled to your speculation , but the reality in this instance is that I am not a family member, yet I do support his cause. In the long run, I don’t see this as a negative situation. I do see it as a situation akin to many other impulses to address a perceived need for change by people with a certain evaluative vantage point. I don’t think it’s bad to sometimes take a step back and look at a custom or tradition. What percentage of the CH community do you think would be honest enough to express their thoughts on this or any controversial topic? What percentage do you think know what it’s like to find their voice about an issue of potential controversy? Is critical thinking a negative thing in the community? I thought that in general Jews are encouraged to ask questions or discuss matters of halacha. Is this a misunderstood notion?

  • Words

    To #29- I would not agree that I am playing any such thing as a childish race tactic, nor do I even indulge in attempting to discredit anyone. I am simply making a comment on how I reacted when I read a reference to a Black baptist. You chose to use a particular race, and you chose to couple that with the name of a particular religion. In my experience, which is based on working with hundreds of people of African American descent, those people are often offended when such choices of wording are used to present an argument in which they are used to present a point that could as easily have been presented without race in the equation. This is a sociological fact, it is not a race tactic .When I shared this with some friends who are African American, they had a similar reaction to mine. One comment was, “Why would he choose those particular words? It sounds racist.” Another comment was, “What does black have to do this? I don’t understand what made a person say ”black“. Another comment was, ”There are black Jews, so I don’t get how that is remotely effective in his argument. I can see if he said “Baptist”. That’s the kind of remark that has caused, be it very subtly, an inclination for many black people to feel hurt, angered, or defensive. People should leave race out of stuff like this.“ For my part, sir or madam, I will tell you that I am an African American, and I was viscerally affected by the wording chosen. I’m not slamming your person, I’m just communicating to you how things are sometimes unintentionally communicated through words. Similar situations occur when words are chosen in reference to Jews, as you are probably aware. Hopefully, most of the time there is not anti-semitism involved; however, sometimes there is. I like to err on the side of caution in matters of human sensitivity, especially since I am ”black”, so I have the experience of over 60 years of culturally-embedded existence. Because I have many students in my charge as a professor at a university, I have also had the good fortune to hear hundreds of students of all ages express their feelings and perspectives. I think I have probably indicated by my relatively lengthy response that I am probably tuned to a sensitive dial on this issue; and yet, I think it’s an issue deserving of thoughtful exchange. I am taking this opportunity to share a personal and professional perspective. I am aware that it certainly is not the theme, per se, of the topic in question, but I felt compelled to respond in kind to the afore-mentioned input. Furthermore, I always support equal opportunities for men and women, so if it is within the halachic parameter to involve women in the voting process, I support that. On the other hand, if it is not, then I suppose one has choices to make.

  • Re: Only women can have opinion?

    So what if women themselves oppose it. Federman is not arguing that women should have to vote but only that those who want are allowed to. Claiming that he can’t voice concerns over this because he is not a women is like saying he can’t have an opinion on Iraq because he never went to war. Also, I know for a fact that Federman spoke to women leaders in the community all of which were afraid of putting their name out….

  • to #48 Take your Hypocracy & Shove it.

    Really? In response to your very wordy, arrogant response to one of the above comments, all I can say is that I think everyone here is very.. polite not to mention the verbal, physical, consistent & continuous bigotry and rabid racism conducted toward the upstanding Jews of this community in the streets, in the subways, and even by intruders in their own houses by (I’m sorry to have to say it) the Black people of this neighborhood. This may or may not include the hundreds of thousands of African Americans who you claim to know personally and who are so righteously indignant at some of the words used on this site.

  • Words contain truth

    Where You seem to have misread the word “hundreds”, in that you wrote that I “claim to know hundreds of thousands of African Americans”; nor did I write that anyone should NOT mention the racism conducted toward the Jews by the Black people of your neighborhood. I don’t think that has relevance to my comment. I’m sorry that you feel it was arrogant, but I was trying to explain why some may interpret your comment as racist and that folks that I talked to did feel it had that flavor. I felt that writing a comment including personal and professional vantage points would present reasons for my original comment. You feel differently about all of that. So be it. G-d bless you, and may the issue of racism diminish in its negativity , so that sensitivities to allusions (or perceived allusions) are not part of the human landscape. Also, I interpreted your beginning with the word “really?” as sarcastic . I would like to apologize if my comment offended you. Again, I was just trying to explain something I feel is important. I used the words I needed to do that, wordy or not.

  • Follow-up

    ….just a correction….The word “Where” doesn’t belong as the first word in #51. I don’t recall placing it there, but somehow it’s there, so who knows. Thanks for the opportunity to clarify.

  • saddened

    To # 50 Oh, dear! When one writes words such as “the Black people of this neighborhood”, it seems that the generalization is what appears to be racist.If the writer had written “some” instead of “the”, then that would have represented a truth. Otherwise, I think it is like saying “the Jews” when referring to a negative stereotype that may fit some sort of description to a select number of people of the Jewish faith. There are Black folk in your neighborhood who are ashamed, upset, and appalled by the terrible behavior of others of their race! Are they THE Black people you generalized about? I think choosing words carefully is crucial in matters of stereotyping. The fact that your words were chosen that way may indicate an unfortunate err, or it may indicate a racist viewpoint. I don’t know. But I do understand the remarks of # 48 and 51. Prejudice, as you may have experienced either directly or historically, is sometimes subtle, yet poisonous. Why accuse him/her of arrogance, when he/she has been hurt by the same prejudice as many of your fellow Jews? And to tell him/her to “shove it”, as if he or people he knows are the ones who have invaded your neighborhood so cruelly? I would venture to say they are not at all proud of those people! At the same time, don’t they have the right to react to negative generalizations of themselves? I just think that everyone could stand to think sensitively when it comes to prejudice, and communicate sensitively and with intelligence, as well. Your “shove it ” comment seems to indicate anger and hurt. I empathize with you. But why tell him/her to “shove it”? He or she is not the one who hurt you! I think you should apologize for lashing out to a person who was trying to explain an unfortunate circumstance in the seemingly never-ending malignancy if prejudice and racism. Moshiach NOW!

  • Connection?

    To # 53- I wager that the individual who told you to “shove it” is so angry and lacking in social awareness , he can’t begin to hear what you are expressing about prejudice. I hear you, though, and I find both your comments extremely perceptive and vastly intelligent. At the same time, a woman’s vote was the original issue, right? Maybe there’s a connection, in that both issues reference equality and rights. I think that “Mr. Shove It” was very rude. And I wouldn’t trust him to vote for a true chasid, yet he gets the say, while a female neshoma must be silent. There’s something uncomfortable about that….very
    uncomfortable for me.

  • Thank you!

    To # 55 Wow! I think you hit the nail on the head! I am uncomfortable, too! The arrogance of some comments (and I’m not talking about the professor) is sad to see. The person who said to stop the hypocrisy ( his spelling was wrong) and “shove it” sounded hypocritical in that message, though. I’m assuming he is a chasid. Not in a good mood that day,was he! I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and say he rethought his words and realized a more compassionate, deeper view of the issue. Move on, and Moshiach now!

  • Supportive person

    To #’s 54 and 55, I’d take a guess that since Mr. or Mrs. Shove It did not respond, he/she may have reconfigured his/her rude and inappropriate comments; however, perhaps my guessing such a notion is off the mark, and the person did not, can not, and never will understand your points of view. All I can say is, “Thank you for your awareness and sensitivity. If there were more people that thought like you, the world would be a better place.” How could others reach your level of awareness? It is very heartwarming. Thanks again.