In New York, home to nearly half of the world’s Jewish population, tens of thousands of Jewish children are not receiving a basic education. Children in many of the most orthodox yeshivas often finish school without being able to read or write in English. Because of the extraordinary political power of ultra-Orthodox communities, their schools have never been required to comply with state law. Unorthodox Education lifts the curtain on these communities, revealing the human cost of actively depriving kids of a secular education. The 40-minute documentary, created by Jewish filmmakers, presents interviews with people who have left the ultra-Orthodox world as well as journalists, academics, and advocates. It chronicles a decade-long political struggle for these children that ended in disastrous defeat in May 2025, when the New York State legislature gutted the ability of state education officials to enforce the law. The film exposes the tragedy of forced ignorance hiding in plain sight in the biggest city in the United States.
