Jewish girls complain about ‘modesty squad’ in New York yeshiva

Jewish girls have complained about a ruthless and degrading “modesty squad” brought in to inspect students’ uniforms at a yeshiva in New York. 

Female students at the Modern Orthodox Yeshiva of Flatbush in Brooklyn broke cover, saying the two modesty monitors hired to scrutinise the girls’ appearance are “overly harsh” and have appealed to the school to “stop the madness”.

One 16-year old student, Melissa Duchan said: “We’re walking in and we’re being scrutinised every morning. We can’t just walk in the halls because everyone’s looking at us and judging us every second for our clothing. It’s degrading.”

Another pupil, 17-year old Jaclyn Klein, said: “They’re overly harsh. They scream at you and bring down your confidence.”

The two enforcers, who are not Jewish, have been added to ensure conformity to a new dress code mandating longer skirts that cover the calf, one earring per earlobe and loose-fitting clothing, with collarbones covered.

Pupils deemed to be outside these parameters are sent home or given school-supplied clothing.