Consolidation 2025

What’s actually going to happen to the “Yiddisher” community in the “beloved country” looking ahead? Yiddisher immigration is picking up, and all the infrastructure built up over years is starting to take strain. The COVID-19 pandemic smashed the economy, and in “Souff Effrikka”, the July 2021 riots were skrikky, and we saw Yidden that were sitting on the fence making the decision to move to greener pastures. Are they greener? Methinks there’s so much bobbameises, that the grass grows greener and thicker.

What happens to the community left, which will be much smaller but still have the infrastructure created to take care of? Methinks because the community is a close-knit unit by and large, things should stay the same, but it’s not what the Yiddisher community wants but what the country wants, and methinks things are very volatile at the moment, and the insecurity with our government balabatim is at danger point. With the “Buffalo” (Cyril Ramaphosa) the presidente, without much power … that’s a reality … and Jacob Zuma supporters are all over Cabinet still, with only a few side-lined, going forward, things will become more difficult. The Yiddisher community is already battling to make ends meet. People have become unemployed, with very little chance of finding new employment.

Since 1994, the position/condition of the majority of the population has tukka gone down, and only a small amount of previously disadvantaged people have benefited, and of course the high fliers, who have been scoring off tenders, fraud/state capture etc. How long can “Souff Effrikka” afford the cost of gunvining on the humungous scale that has been going on? There is a definite slow down since Cyril Ramaphosa came in, but soooo much still to do.

The “Souff Effrikken” ethos has been destroyed by the government’s continual inaction against crime, kamikaze taxi gangsters, unions etc, and now the latest bombshell is the “organised” rioting/looting that took place in July of that year. This is a groiser one, and I believe that by now, someone should have been arrested as the ringleader of the tzorris, but looking back at past mistakes by the government in dealing with these things, it has been disastrous, and one only has to look at “Eishhkom”, “Hellkom”, South African Airways etc, and be worried about how they will manage successfully to put an end to such destruction. We’re looking at R50 billion minimum from one rioting event, which isn’t that much compared to what’s being stolen by the “comrades” on a daily basis.

The recession we find ourselves in will get worse before it gets better, and the population is suffering, big time. There isn’t an industry that hasn’t been affected, and what remedial action do the “men from the ministry” take – none. With the 30% tariff hike in place from the United States, things are tukka going to get much worse, and the government have just poer poered and did not get down to “seriaaaaaaaaaas” negotiations with Donald Trump’s men.

Then there’s a small minority of the population called Yidden trying to carry on as normal – not possible, and nothing has been done to start consolidating resources, and no one has stepped up to make it happen? Unfortunately, the community is an ageing community, and it’s that much more difficult to maintain the huge infrastructure that we have. Emigration is a reality, and according to statistics, many Yidden have starting making aliya, as it has become too difficult for families to manage in the normal emigration haunts like Australia, the US, United Kingdom, and Canada, might I add, countries that are becoming hostile to Yidden. Times are hard at the moment, and proper leadership is needed to keep the community intact. Continually stretching scarce Yiddisher resources will see a total collapse of the community. We saw that Our Parents Home in Oaklands had to be closed down due to failing numbers and rising costs. And many of the shuls are battling to stay open due to the failure of congregants to return after the COVID-19 pandemic and deaths during COVID-19, and emigration, which is a big one. How long will all the Yiddisher schools be viable, with numbers dropping every year? We recently experienced the closing of King David Victory Park. We have seen shuls curtaining off part of the seating, so that they do not look umadik (empty).

On the brighter side – if there is one – many Yidden are starting to make Israel their first choice for immigration, and that is wonderful to see. Not only youngsters as in the past, but many family units are starting to make aliya. It’s wonderful to see, but we are losing many top members of the community.

At the moment there is a skrikky amount of Yidden who have fallen on bad times, and in most cases, it’s a question not of how they got into these situations, but of COVID-19/the economy as weak as it was, and the difficulty for 40/50-year-olds that have been retrenched to get employment. It’s really sad, and methinks it will get worse, and I’m not convinced that we will get out of the tough cycle quickly. It could take many years to come right. We have to ask ourselves, what happens now? Does the community keep growing in every direction, or shouldn’t we consolidate and work together?

Time for the balabatim to make some wise choices.

Amolikke yoren we had captains of the Yiddisher community, guys like the late Mendel Kaplan; Gerald Leissner; Bertie Lubner; Solly Krok; and many others who stepped up and did e-mazing work to keep the community strong. I don’t see this type of leadership these days. There definitely are Yidden making a difference, but not like amolikke yoren. The time has come to amalgamate various schools/shuls/charities etc, to be able to have a strong front.

What the dreamers and schemers don’t realise is that the tzedakah pool has shrunk, and for such a small community to have, for example, 50/60 Charidy events a year is just not viable, as people are being stretched to the limit.

Forward planning for the community is the answer, making sure that any new expansions/developments are carefully thought out before going forward with the project.

The demographics of Yidden is the most important factor when planning anything in the future. In the past, many suspect areas were chosen, and investments lost.

I end with a famous joke.

“Why are there no more cafés in the ‘beloved country’?

Because every time one closes, they open a shteibel.”

• Stan Smookler is synonymous with Stan & Pete Caterers since 1974 and Stan The Good Shabbos Man-25th anniversary year.