The Rubashkin-Lubinsky Smear Begins

Never people to admit their mistakes (intentional or otherwise), the Rubashkin family has launched a concerted effort to smear people involved in trying to stop the abuses at the Rubashkins' Agriprocessors plant in Postville, Iowa.

Perhaps the…

…crudest example of this so far is the following piece by an Agriprocessors executive posted on VosIzNeias:

Deceptive Jewish Rabbis, And Their “hechsher tzedek” Crap
By Sima Bensasson
[Sima Bensasson lives in Postville and manages the real estate company owned by the Rubashkins]

Postville, IA - I need to preface this by saying that I am a Conservative Jew and currently affiliate with a Conservative synagogue in La Crosse, Wisconsin.

I am embarrassed that someone who claims to be a religious leader of Conservative Jewry has the gall to urge his fellow Jews to stop buying kosher meat from Agriprocessors under the platform that unethical conditions existed at the plant. Morris Allen, who I’m not sure even deserves the privilege of the title rabbi, seems to be on a witch-hunt and will stop at nothing, especially if it means possibly seeking the truth. Mr. Allen has been pushing to break the Orthodox/ultra-Orthodox monopoly on kashrut certification by creating what he calls the “hechsher tzedek”. This is an attempt by both him and select members of the Conservative movement to break into the “hechsher” market. And while I may not agree with all facets of Orthodoxy, my comfort level with Chabad Shlichim and their unwavering belief in all-encompassing Judaism and its perpetuity have made me a supporter of Chabad, Agriprocessors, and the Rubashkin family, whom I have known for 14 years.

Are any of the allegations that Mr. Allen and his group of union sympathizers claim actually true? I am sure that issues brought to the attention of the appropriate personnel would have been investigated.
Mr. Allen and his group, which sad to say includes your rabbi, spoke with a select group of frightened people, who, in some cases, after working several years for this same company that “abused” them, were in danger of losing their families, facing jail terms and deportation. No one at Agri ever held workers hostage; they were free to leave Agriprocessors’ employ whenever they wanted. They CHOSE not to. Apparently working conditions weren’t as miserable, dangerous, and at a pay scale so low that these workers had to flee once they had some money in their pocket. Not mentioned were the many positive media accounts, such as in the Washington Post, where a worker lamented losing a good, well-paying job that he liked after 11 years, as he and his family were now being forced to leave. Nowhere in the letter does it say that Mr. Allen, Rabbi Kravitz, et al, spoke with any representatives of Agriprocesors! Did they speak with any of the Jewish families in town or did the fact that several Jewish men were also arrested escape them?

My side of the story? Where is the Agriprocessors’ side of the story as told to Mr. Allen and the union workers? There is none, because they were not interested in the other side of the story. Plain and simple. [The Conservative Movement is still waiting for Sholom M. Rubashkin to respond to the concerns voiced to him in early December 2006 by the movement, which included many aspects of how Agriprocessors treats its workers. Rubashkin was, he claimed then, preparing to respond. He never has. –– Shmarya.] Take two disgruntled groups: the union workers who were unsuccessful at establishing a foothold in the company, and “rabbis” who under the guise of “humanitarianism” and “righteousness” want to suggest that Jews switch brand loyalty from Glatt Kosher Aaron’s Best to non-glatt kosher Hebrew National. Should I mention the fees Mr. Allen and his group would stand to collect from companies who will use his hechsher? This is not the first attempt by Mr. Allen to malign Agirprocessors and its Chasidic owners. I am now questioning the connection between Mr. Allen and the union with regards to Agriprocessors!

Better Mr. Allen should spend his time, and perhaps Rabbi Kravitz should do the same, in finding ways to assist the U.S. government in maintaining secure borders and helping to sponsor the DREAM Act which would have enabled the “undocumented” students in our school district to work towards citizenship, either by performing military service or attending college. There is a fine young man who graduated with my nephew and whose future is now uncertain, as well as members of my son’s undefeated soccer team who will now be forced to return to countries with poverty, unemployment, and pitiful living conditions. Here, many families had a chance to create a better future. Where are Mr. Allen and your rabbi using their influence within the Conservative Movement in helping to create a quicker way for immigrants to achieve U.S. citizenship? That is the spirit of Tikun Olam.

Your rabbi is talking about Hillul Hashem? The biggest Hillul Hashem is his inability to recognize that the current issue did not begin with Agriprocessors, but by the failure of Human Rights groups to advocate hard enough for legislation on work permits for potential immigrants seeking citizenship. Instead, Agriprocessors is, in my opinion, being used as a scapegoat to cover up our government’s failure to provide us with safe and secure borders (that should be ICE’s job – not raiding plants and destroying families after the fact).

I not only find this inexcusable, but due to the high profile image of this company – Agriprocessors is the largest Glatt-kosher slaughterhouse and processing plant in the entire world, family-owned and operated by Chasidic Jews - I raise the possibility that this raid was actually caused by anti-Semitism! It reminds me of a book on Postville that I read years ago; the author now has company in his world of self-hating Jews.

Perhaps the Conservative constituency who is sponsoring this “hechsher tzedek” should check their own laundry baskets. How many members have electronics in their homes? Do they shop at Wal-Mart, Macys, and other top establishments? Do they know where the goods come from? Are they driving American cars (with foreign-made parts) or German cars (lest we forget the six million)? Most off-shore manufacturing facilities provide standards way below what was alleged to be found here. Yet, I am sure this new committee patronizes these stores and drives their cars without any fuss. Where does their ”hechsher tzedek” fit in here? Why have they targeted only Agriprocessors’ meat? What about fruits and vegetables that come from Florida and California? Now let’s discuss price control. Do we want to see $10 burgers at your favorite fast food eateries? Yes, plenty of Conservative Jews eat at these places - they just don’t like to admit it. After all, what do you think happens to the 70% percent slaughtered meat from Agri not considered “kosher”?

I truly hope that Mr. Allen and Rabbi Kravitz were not successful in brainwashing the members of your congregation by feeding them falsehoods. Your rabbi’s letter is filled with inaccurate and incomplete statements. Hearsay is the best he could come up with, from a select group of displaced workers. Where is the support of your congregation to make sure that the Jewish community worldwide will have Glatt Kosher Aaron’s meat available to them? How many busloads of your members made the journey here to work the line to assist filling the temporary void formed by an overnight reduction in workers? If this is an example of what Conservative Judaism is, it is no wonder why it is struggling hardest of Judaism’s three main branches and why it continues to lose popularity every day.

Sounds to me like this was a good ol’fashioned LYNCHING! That’s the truth.

Sima Bensasson lives in Postville and manages the real estate company owned by the Rubashkins

The truth seems to be that the Rubashkins, their rabbis and their paid spokespeople all no longer understand what the word truth means.

Comments

[michael ben drosai]

how is it any less one sided than much of what passes here for journalism?

now let's analyze it - obviously as a highly placed employee, he has an agenda, to be sure. That being said;

"Perhaps the Conservative constituency who is sponsoring this “hechsher tzedek” should check their own laundry baskets. How many members have electronics in their homes? Do they shop at Wal-Mart, Macys, and other top establishments? Do they know where the goods come from? Are they driving American cars (with foreign-made parts) or German cars (lest we forget the six million)? Most off-shore manufacturing facilities provide standards way below what was alleged to be found here. Yet, I am sure this new committee patronizes these stores and drives their cars without any fuss. Where does their ”hechsher tzedek” fit in here? Why have they targeted only Agriprocessors’ meat? What about fruits and vegetables that come from Florida and California"

the man makes a valid point that many of the stone throwers live in glass houses and Rubash is simply a convenient target (yes sometimes the truth is inconvenient)

[Shmarya]

MBD –

Please.

Buying a German car (hundreds of millions of dollars in reparations, a strong ally of Israel) hardly equates with extorting poor illegal workers.

Likewise, Wal Mart and Macy's are not specifically Jewish businesses selling a specifically Jewish product. Rubashkin is.

Further, non-Orthodox Jews have been at the forefront of the movement to end sweatshop-produced clothing. They are also in the forefront of the movement to free Tibet.

All in all, a pathetic, crude, illogical argument from a paid executive employee of Agriprocessor.

[John]

By Sima Bensasson - CONTROLLER, AGRIPROCESSORS, INC.???

Sima Bensasson is not the controller of Agriprocessors and she is not identified as such in the post on VosIzNeias. Get your facts right, please.

[Shmarya]

Says it at the bottom of the post there.

[John]

No it doesn't. Are you so blinded by your hatred of the Rubashkins?

The bottom of the quote says and I quote:

News Source: Sima Bensasson - lives in Postville and manages the real estate company owned by the Rubashkins

[Shmarya]

Idiot.

VIN changed the post. It used to read "Agriprocessors inc. – controller."

[John]

So, I'm waiting for you to change YOUR misleading post.

BTW is 'Idiot' considered name-calling, which contravenes rule #5 of this blog, or are you exempt?

[Shmarya]

Let's see. You accused me of being "blinded by hatred." And it never occurred to you that VIN may have changed its post. You only thought I was wrong – intentionally or otherwise.

And now you want me to be nice to you?

Please.

And the change anyway makes your original point moot. She works for the Rubashkin family. She runs Nevel, their real estate company. Nevel is accused of extorting Agri workers.

[steve]

It's amazing how some people think that these accusations against Rubashkin are something new. For years now there have been reports regarding health and safety violations, kashrus issues (from shechita to labeling),animal cruelty, and worker abuse. Shmarya reported about the illegal workers many times before the ICE raid. The raid only confirmed what he had been saying all along, and then some. Lubinsky and his cohorts are trying to paint this as one misguided incident that will all be cleared up and everyone will be happy. You all need to look at the complete picture and do some research before you side with these corrupt businessmen. They have lied many times in public (the KAJ withdrawl and the food recalls are two examples that come to mind)and they will not hesitate to do so again to protect their business.

[John]

I wasn't asking you to be nice me; I was asking if you are subject to the rules.

"And it never occurred to you that VIN may have changed its post"

No, I must admit that based on what I'm reading in your blog the thought did not occur to me. I will try to give you the benefit of the doubt in the future.

However, the fact remains that your post is not accurate (the fact that in the past it was almost accurate is irrelevant).

Your contention that the point is moot is your judgement. You should be scrupulously accurate in quoting others and let the readers make their own judgement.

[Carol Ann Varley]

For any matter of importance in this world one can contrive innumerable counter-arguements which only serve to obfuscate the issue at hand.

Agriprocessors is bad news. Seventy percent of its products are non-kosher and sold to secular markets. Purchasing products from a company with a factual history of animal abuses and federal charges of human exploitation makes one complicit in their shameful acts.

Accusations of anti-semitism won't wash away the truth.

[Shmolom Rubashkin]

im getting tired of all you shmucks sticking up for me. like i need it? this guy shmear'ya is telling the truth. don't you shlemiels get it?

[C-Girl]

The article now says that she runs the Rubashkins' real estate business.

And Shmarya is correct. Her job description has been changed on the article. Plus, she (and her husband-!!) are both listed as "Agriprocessors Inc./ Controller" here on this Iowa political contributors page:
http://tinyurl.com/4gmgcu

If she can't even decide who she is, why in the world should anybody believe this article?-- which probably wasn't even written by the person purporting to be its author. Think about it, who better to slam the Conservative movement than a self-hating Conservative shul-attending Jew?

[john]

So maybe tinyurl.com is as reliable as some of the other sources you treat as gospel?

She is not the controller; stop beating a dead horse, just admit that Shmarya should have updated the reference sooner than he did, and move on.

The Rubashkins' PR is sorely deficient. I will not dispute the accusations since Lo ro'isis aino rai'a BUT there are tons of positive things about them, INCLUDING how they treat their workers, that are simply not being given attention.

One vignette; On the audio of Aaron R, the reporter sounded surprised that the R's make medical insurance available to all their workers. Did YOU know that?

[john]

So maybe tinyurl.com is as reliable as some of the other sources you treat as gospel?

She is not the controller; stop beating a dead horse, just admit that Shmarya should have updated the reference sooner than he did, and move on.

The Rubashkins' PR is sorely deficient. I will not dispute the accusations since Lo ro'isis aino rai'a BUT there are tons of positive things about them, INCLUDING how they treat their workers, that are simply not being given attention.

One vignette; On the audio of Aaron R, the reporter sounded surprised that the R's make medical insurance available to all their workers. Did YOU know that?

[formely frum]

What Sima Bensasson fails to answer or address is the past trouble convictions of rubahskin and rubashkins held companies. These is a family that had trouble with the law-fraud before and has been convicted.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriprocessors
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moshe_Rubashkin

[C-Girl]

"john", tinyurl.com is not the source. It is a service that shortens url's. It links to an actual site. Your friends the Bensassons, like many other Agri families, contributed thousands of $$ to political campaigns. They listed their occupations as "controller" on the official record of at least one. If they are/were not actually the "controller", then they are dishonest and potentially fraudulent.

[formely frum]

What Sima Bensasson fails to answer or address is the past trouble convictions of rubahskin and rubashkins held companies. These is a family that had trouble with the law-fraud before and has been convicted.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriprocessors
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moshe_Rubashkin

[formely frum]

What Sima Bensasson fails to answer or address is the past trouble convictions of rubahskin and rubashkins held companies. These is a family that had trouble with the law-fraud before and has been convicted.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agriprocessors
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moshe_Rubashkin

[formely frum]

sorry about the triple post not sure how that happened

[john]

Sorry for the double post. I only press 'post' once.

"C-Girl", her husband is the controller, she is not. It remains for everyone's judgement to decide whether his being the controller is relevant to the issues raised in her post. I, for one, think it is not.

[steve]

Rubashkin boycott called for June 15:

http://www.jta.org/cgi-bin/iowa/breaking/108924.html

[shmendrick]

john

here is the full url (and hence the source) for you.

http://projectusa.org/library/postville/agri-processors_political_contributions.html

it mentions both of them as controller there.

[Kishkeman]

On the potsvillevoices.com sight I wrote a comment on one of their discussions regarding illegal workers. It's awaiting moderation, let's see if it sticks. I wrote:
Kishkeman Says: Your comment is awaiting moderation.

In the JTA interview with Aaron Rubashkin that article says “The affidavit states that Agriprocessors received five separate notices from the Social Security Administration of 500 Social Security number discrepancies.”

So it sounds like SSA asked Agri to do something about the problem, that SSA gave them many opportunities to do something about the illegals they hired. Agri didn’t. Now I will do something. I won’t buy your products. Good day.

[state of the Jews]

Let me see if I understand this correctly: Someone identified as R.W. was accused by ICE of being the bag man for the Rubashkin's, paying workers who didn't have proper indentification papers in cash so they wouldn't appear on Agriprocessor's books. And he got the money from who???

Well, john, if she had been honest about her role in the affair- the wife of the guy who handles the Agri money- she might've called her article "Deceptive Jewish Businessmen, And Their “we are innocent and our product is kosher” Crap". Just sayin'.

[jewishwhistleblower]

Susie Smear's take on all of this in the current Jewish Smear and Opinion:

See: http://www.jewishvoiceandopinion.com/pdf/200806.pdf

p.42 (Excerpts of much longer article)
...
In Postville, Iowa, where the Agriprocessors kosher meatpacking plant is located, at least one community leader suspects some longtime residents of the town, who, he said, have never been comfortable with the Lubavitch chassidic Jews who own the plant or the mostly Hispanic immigrants who work there, may have been behind the raid conducted at the plant by federal agents last month.
...
Rumors
Although none of Agri’s managers, administrators, or owners have been indicted or even charged, the rumor mill, egged on by left-wing Jewish and so-called animal-rights groups, has worked overtime.
There have been unofficial allegations of fraud and worker, drug, and sex abuse.
...

[state of the Jews]

"none of Agri's managers, administrators, or owners have been indicted or even charged ...."

Wait for it.
I understand that subpoenas were delivered to the Agriprocessor plant last week.
Don't rush, charges will follow.

The raid was not the end of a legal process, it was the beginning.

Remember there were 16 Federal and state agencies involved in the raid - they're probably all fighting among themselves to decide who has the strongest evidence and can bring the first indictment.

This whole episode is a tragedy for Jews, kosher consumers, kashrut, certifying agencies and most of all for the poor workers who suffered at the hands of the Rubashkins ... and now the US Government. It is a reflection of our own failure as a comunity to police the institutions of Jewish life and we should all be ashamed.
Yom Kippur is months away but it has been on my mind lately. Postville has given us an especially good reason to fast this year. There is much about which we as a community, need to reflect.

[Carol Ann Varley]

Secular consumers are sucked into the Agriprocessors vortex. A greater percentage (70%) of non-kosher products are produced than kosher.

TEST QUESTION:
Why is so much non-kosher meat from animals slaughtered under religious ritual sold to the secular consumer?

Select an answer:
a) The hindquarters of cattle are unused as kosher.
b) The shocket makes incorrect knife cuts.
c) Internal organs are defective.
d) All of the above.
e) Other

If 'other' is selected, please explain.

[Netta]

Here is a good one for everyone who is wondering about Sima and her husband Toby. Toby is the controller for Agriprocessors and Sima does indeed work for Nevel. Both of course owned by our good buddies the Rubashkins. Sorry to say but all the things people are saying are in fact true. Hasam Amara fathering a child with a hispanis woman so she can get a better paying job. Know this to be fact as I translated for the woman and the child looks just like him. I used to work there about 3 years ago for 6 years and was called on to translate and how they talked to the people was just horrible. I quit because they wanted me to tell the workers things that I cannot even repeat in here. I have seen the letters that were given to ALL the employees from Guatemala and Mexico to get there good social security numbers and work cards signed by none other than Elizabeth Billmeyer and Sholom Rubashkin.