There’s been a lot discussion recently about a reality TV show on Netflix that purports to depict the story of someone “breaking free” from their Orthodox life.
Many have shared their thoughts about the show itself (which I haven’t seen) and its inaccurate and disparaging depiction of Orthodoxy. Hundreds of Orthodox women responded to the show using the #MyOrthodoxLife hashtag on social media posting a very different picture of what life in the Orthodox Jewish community is like for them, and how it isn’t anything close to the “reality” portrayed by Netflix. I will leave it to those women to tell their own story.
Instead, I’ve been wondering what would happen if a camera crew followed me around all day? What if someone recorded all my interactions at work and all my conversations with my family at home? Of course reality TV is often scripted and people act differently when they know they’re on camera, but would I want such a film to be streamed online? Would you?
One film I would like to see, is a day or week in the life of my Agudah colleagues. Every day brings a different challenge. On the way to the statehouse to advocate for a scholarship bill they may be on the phone advising a school administrator how to navigate the bureaucratic maze of government. On their way back, they may field questions from constituents having issues with religious accommodations in the workplace, obtaining a US passport for an urgent trip, or trying to stop an unnecessary autopsy. I would love to know their secret. How do they accomplish so much, in so little time?
The few times that some of them, like Rabbi Shlomo Soroka (link) and Rabbi Yitz Frank (link), followed themselves with a camera at the statehouse, hundreds of people followed along and asked for more.
Maybe we should launch a behind-the-scenes series called “My Agudah Orthodox Life”?
Let me know your thoughts.
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A.D.