A Fortress in Brooklyn: Race, Real Estate, and the Making of Hasidic Williamsburg by Nathaniel Deutsch and Michael Casper charts the course of the Satmar Hasidim in their corner of Brooklyn. Satmar wants us to think that their form of Judaism is the only game in town, and that they have not changed since their relocation to America after the Second World War.
The authors show us that quite the contrary, Satmar has adapted well to New York City, and are intimately involved in its politics, social action initiatives, and especially, with the coming of gentrification, the real estate market. You will read a great deal about Brooklyn real estate in this book.
My take away is that there is no fundamental in fundamentalists groups; they change with the circumstances, adjust, and do what they believe is necessary for their own self-interest. They are always adjusting and new.
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