Let them out on Shabbos and they'll ruin the Hamptons

Arnold Sheiffer summed up his opposition to an eruv in Westhampton with a single word: Lawrence.

“Lawrence was once a vibrant community,” Sheiffer — the founder of The Jewish People Opposed to the Eruv — told Hampton Patch, an online news site. “Now, it is mostly Orthodox. Schools have shut down and property values were destroyed.”

Needless to say, current residents of Lawrence are not pleased with his comments.

“Five Towns is still a vibrant area,” said Asher Mansdorf, a member of the District 15 public school board. “The Five Towns welcomes everybody, even Mr. Sheiffer.”

The spotlight fell on Lawrence in federal court, when on Jan. 13, the non-profit East End Eruv Association brought a lawsuit against the towns and town officials of Southhampton, Westhampton and Qougue. The suit alleges that Orthodox residents are being discriminated against by the towns since they are blocking an eruv, a symbolic boundary that enables religious Jewish parents of young children freedom of movement on Shabbos.

“The object, motivation, and effect of the actions of the Defendants is to suppress the religious practices of the plaintiffs and other Orthodox Jews who reside in Westhampton Beach and parts of Quogue and Southampton,” the suit states. “These actions have specifically targeted Jewish citizens, as the laws that the Defendants seek to invoke to prevent the establishment of the eruv is not enforced against citizens of other faiths.”

The objects of contention are lechis, small wooden posts usually placed on utility poles, that facilitate the eruv. The town claims that the placement of the posts is under its jurisdiction.

Two years ago, when Rabbi Marc Shneier of the Hamptons Synagogue attempted to put up an eruv he faced immediate opposition. The public outcry forced him to retreat.

“There was a very raucous response that led to very divisive rhetoric and diatribe,” Rabbi Shneier told The Jewish Week.

Rabbi Schneier is not involved in the latest attempt, though the synagogue’s president, Morris Tuchman, is a plaintiff in the suit. The sheer vehemence directed against the eruv has stunned some.