Haredim move from Mea Shearim to Beit Shemesh. They harass the local population, threaten store owners, riot and cause all types of trouble. Non-haredi Orthodox Jews (and even some haredim) move away in fear and disgust. What are they fleeing? This:
…Haredi residents had hung up a sign at a shopping mall attesting to the character of the place, instructing shoppers to dress modestly. The shopping center has little traffic as it is, having to adhere to strict modesty regulations and holding limited supplies.
The local health clinic and supermarket operate separate hours for men and women. A pizza parlor owner was warned that if boys and girls sat there together in the evenings, they would suffer the consequences.
After the plaque was removed by police and local inspectors, on the grounds that it was placed there illegally, all hell broke lose. Haredi residents started throwing stones at the police, who responded by fighting back. Eight protestors were arrested and one was evacuated, unconscious, to hospital.The haredim started to spray paint their modesty requirements on walls of buildings, adding a personal message to the Beit Shemesh police chief, Oz Eliasi: "Oz is a Nazi".…
When Ramat Beit Shemesh B was built, most of the residents arrived from the overflowing extreme haredi communities in Jerusalem: Neturei Karta, Toldot Aharon and Satmar. Out of a total 5,000 haredi families in Beit Shemesh, 1,500 families are from these sects.
Soon after these families moved in, a modesty revolution started: Public buses, faced by competition from haredi pirate services, get stoned; falafel and pizza shops are forced to close early in the evening. Major sidewalks are split, with one side for men, the other for women.…
The national religious population has been driven out of town. "I am planning to leave with my family very soon," said one national religious woman. "Every time I walk down the street, I'm frightened. Hundreds of haredim stare at me and scrutinize the way I'm dressed. It is not pleasant to live here."[Edah Charedis spokesman Rabbi Shmuel Haim] Popenheim responded: "The secular people must understand, they either lock up [the pizza shops and falafel stands] early or they'll have trouble."
[Hat Tips: KK and The Beadle.]