WPIX and COLlive
Occupy Wall Street isn’t the only protest attracting media attention in our area. A religious group in Williamsburg organized a protest of a hair salon on Lee Avenue.
PIX11 News obtained a controversial flyer in Yiddish, circulating around the predominately Orthodox community in Williamsburg. The flyer asks people to protest the Iris Salon, at 311 Lee Avenue, because it is “immodest” and is allegedly offensive to the surrounding religious community.
PIX11 News visited the salon. At the site of the salon, there is only a outside saying “Cleaners” and curtains covering all the windows. The owner of the salon refused to comment on this story.
The lastest protest of the group in front of the salon, was back in May when almost a hundred people gathered.
Pictures of the last protest are posted on a Facebook page created by supporters of the salon.
The page says, “the Willamburg Taliban” is attacking the salon ownership and, “a small group of extremists is seeking to terrorize and honest businesswoman.”
Back in May, the same group protested at Sherman’s second salon location in Crown Heights.
An employee for the Crown Heights salon told COLlive.com then that “Iris has lots of friends and customers in Williamsburg, and they asked why doesn’t she open a store there, close to their homes.
“Then a small group of crazy people started making problems. But everybody is begging us to stay open. A rabbi even called us asking not to close because women need such a place.”
Just because you don’t understand their reasoning doesn’t make it unjustified. It could simply be your ignorance. Tznius is humility. Getting your nails painted is not humble, it’s arrogant, slipped by the yetzer tov championed as beauty, but it only corrodes a persons self-worth. Beauty is not in paint, it’s in a person inherent worth. Brushing one’s hair so it looks ‘nice’ (the hair itself) is beautifying the actual entity of the person, covering over a persons natural beauty with makeup and paints and dyes etc is devaluing a persons inherent worth. Furthermore, ein ladavar sof, there is no end… Read more »
and I quote “so they fear that the contagious plague of IMMODESTY (SEEN IN CROWN HEIGHTS) may spread to their community…” -14#-
so put it on a different street.
I don’t see the breach in tznius.
when you come into a community that is not yours you have t respect their standards. They do not have to respect yours. If this is their code of law, their standard, their dress code, you must respect that. Do not go where you are not wanted
Can someone please explain in a clear way why some residents of Williamsburg consider the salon not tznius. What is done there that is objectionable?
what an unbiased article…
If the ppl from. Crown heights knew both sides of the story Many ppl will understand the hurt she is is causing (probably unintentionaly) 1) Williamsburg (orthodox Jews) are literalists in their belief of the Bible, so they fear that the contagious plague of immodesty (seen in crown heights) may spread to their community… 2) The Bible warns of sever tragedies to a community who’s street view becomes unSanctified or unholy (immodest or what Jewish law considers provocative attire) 3) since the unusually high rate of untimely deaths & recent tagedies in crown heights, these “literallists” in Williamsburg see her… Read more »
NOOOOOO iris dont let them we love ur salon plz plzz keep it
She deserves it. You don’t open a store that’s against someones values in his area
Is the problem that the women come out of the salon looking beautiful? Women are walking down the street for many reasons.
to many, wether justified or not, such a venue is offensive. Its called pritzas geder meaning a breach in the existing standard.
To number 7
opening a business is very costly. She merely needs to stay open long enough that she can walk away without a severe loss.
To #3
Even if she could have found another location, and (for the sake of argument say) she chose this one specifically, and irresponsibly simply for the traffic flow with the hopes of greater business—that in no way concludes that such horrific and inappropriate behavior should take place by the “Tznious” police.
If Iris’s claim is that she wanted to make it easier for people in williamsburg to come to her, and all that its doing is making fights and controversy, why doesnt she just close down?
Obviously there are other interests involved besides the well- being of the women in williamsburg…
loves how these ppl insist on not being fringed upon in their lives, but openly infringe on others w no remorse , not to mention THEY ADVERTISE IT!!! SHAMEFUL!!!
no hair salons in FRUM comunities its not tznius
while i am not a fan of these kind of protesting i gotta say that in fact this Iris salon is the first and only salon in the whole williamsburg area, and to open beauty salon on lee ave which is the center of the williamsburg sounds to me too big of a step to take at once, its on a street where 100’s of the surrounding hole Hasidic jews are passing by in a daily basses, there gotta be a batter location for a salon than in the middle of lee ave.
amazing styling and amazing nails! thanks for giving me gr8 service
THis is insane. and can we have pictuers please?