Unorthodox Unorthodox: The Sequel

The response to my previous post, Unorthodox Unorthodox, about the extraordinary former Satmar girl who overcame the odds to become a social worker and now a medical student, was overwhelmingly positive. And I don't just mean in terms of people liking what I wrote and sharing it on Facebook. Many dozens of people contributed to Nisi Goldstein's fundraising campaign to help her through medical school. I received the following message from Nisi:
Just an update: I feel so honored and humbled. Your article is leading to many positive and welcoming responses from people. It's opening my eyes to see how big and diverse and loving our Jewish family really is. I have you to thank for launching this snowball effect. Also, a good friend of mine is a staunch follower of yours and he has advised me not to read any of the comments because you have a couple of haters too. On that note I just want to commend you for speaking truths in the face of the hate. It can be brutal. I'm sure you don't need me to tell you, but please keep doing that. It is so important. I'm also planning to speak with Efrat - there's a 1.5 year old organization for Jewish orthodox people in medicine (don't necessarily have to be orthodox to join). They offer seminars for premed orthodox students and health education in the charedi community. I want to get on board with them and do good things.
Kudos to all those people who donated, or who reached out with offers of hospitality or other assistance!

Some people, unfortunately, were positively hostile to my post. There were some extremely derogatory comments that I did not allow to be posted - I'm fine with people insulting me, but not with them insulting others. One person raged against Nisi's non-tzniyus attire and loose hair(!). Another cited a verse from Malachi: "We account the arrogant happy: they have indeed done evil and endured; they have indeed dared God and escaped.” I'm pretty sure that none of these people experienced growing up in Satmar.
Several others objected that since she is not currently observant, observant Jews should not be supporting her medical studies; they should only support her if she was still Satmar or at least observant. Apparently they are under the misconception that the only reason to support someone is if they carry your values. I wonder if they would equally say that non-observant Jews should never donate money to Orthodox Jews? Furthermore, it's precisely because of the problems of certain Orthodox communities that people like Nisi need extra support. If you consider Satmar to be broadly in the same tent as yourself, then you also have a responsibility to help those that have been harmed by Satmar.
But there's a much more direct reason to help Nisi and people like her, and it relates to another objection that some people raised. They asked how I can be supportive of helping a non-observant medical student and simultaneously opposed to supporting kollel students. The answer is very simple.
Supporting a medical student is helping someone who will be majorly contributing to the society. This is all the more true for someone like Nisi Goldstein, who does not plan to be a private physician for the rich and becoming rich, but rather took an oath to be a compassionate healthcare provider specifically for people from under-served communities. And the fact that doing this required overcoming huge obstacles that were created for her by her Orthodox Jewish community makes her case even more compelling.
In contrast, the average kollel student (not someone training to become an educator) is not going to be contributing to society. On the contrary; they will be draining resources from it. And they plan to raise children who will likewise not contribute to society, and who will drain further resources from it. There's no comparison.
I would like to stress again that the people with the negative comments were in the minority. They were vastly outnumbered by those who responded positively. As Nisi wrote, this shows "how big and diverse and loving our Jewish family really is."
You can read more about Nisi and support her at this link. To quote Nisi's mantra from when she was in premed and was wondering if she could ever catch up with others: אויב יענער קען קענסטו אויך. Which means, If someone else can do it, so can you!
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