Chabad hipsters (or hipster Hasidim) are the cross-acculturated members of the

Chabad Chabad, also known as Lubavitch, Habad and Chabad-Lubavitch (), is an Orthodox Jewish Hasidic dynasty. Chabad is one of the world's best-known Hasidic movements, particularly for its outreach activities. It is one of the largest Hasidic group ...

Hasidic Hasidism, sometimes spelled Chassidism, and also known as Hasidic Judaism (Ashkenazi Hebrew: חסידות ''Ḥăsīdus'', ; originally, "piety"), is a Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in the territory of contem ...

community and contemporary

hipster subculture The 21st-century hipster is a subculture (sometimes called hipsterism). Fashion is one of the major markers of hipster identity. Members of the subculture typically do not self-identify as hipsters, and the word ''hipster'' is often used as a pe ...

. Beginning from the late 2000s through the 2010s, a minor trend of cross acculturation of Chabad Hasidism and hipster subculture appeared within the

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

Jewish community Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

. The first printed reference to this trend was the 2007 New York Press cover story, "Hipster Hassids" by Alyssa Pinsker. Later, according to ''

The Jewish Daily Forward ''The Forward'' ( yi, פֿאָרווערטס, Forverts), formerly known as ''The Jewish Daily Forward'', is an American news media organization for a Jewish American audience. Founded in 1897 as a Yiddish-language daily socialist newspaper, '' ...

'', a significant number of members of the

community, mostly residing in

Crown Heights, Brooklyn Crown Heights is a neighborhood in the central portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Crown Heights is bounded by Washington Avenue to the west, Atlantic Avenue to the north, Ralph Avenue to the east, and Empire Boulevard/East New Yo ...

, appear to now have adopted various cultural affinities of the local hipster subculture.Greenfield, Nicole
."Birth of Hipster Hasidism?"
''Religion Dispatches''. University of Southern Carolina. February 2, 2012Nussbaum-Cohen, Debra
"Of Hasids, Hipsters, and Hipster Hasids."
''

''. January 26, 2012.

Background

Cultural similarities between some of the Hasidic community's members and New York City hipsters were noted on blogs such as ''Hasid or Hipster'' (inspired in part by the art of

Elke Reva Sudin Elke Reva Sudin (born 1987) is a Jewish-American painter, illustrator and lecturer. In 2010, her ''Hipsters and Hassids'' painting series premiered in New York City, comparing and contrasting her Hasidic Jewish origins and hipster Brooklyn cultur ...

). According to ''

'', a number of members of the Crown Heights Chabad community, all while adhering to the norms of Orthodox dress codes, have incorporated contemporary fashion as a part of their daily appearance. Similarly, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' noted that some New York hipsters appeared to be appropriating local Chabad Hasidic fashion by wearing black

fedora hat A fedora () is a hat with a soft brim and indented crown.Kilgour, Ruth Edwards (1958). ''A Pageant of Hats Ancient and Modern''. R. M. McBride Company. It is typically creased lengthwise down the crown and "pinched" near the front on both sides ...

s. Some hipsters reported purchasing their headwear from Hasidic shops in Brooklyn."Culture-Hopping in a Fedora."
Fashion and Style. ''The New York Times''. April 29, 2011. Closely associated with the adoption of the "black hat", the preference for long skirts by female hipsters in New York are believed to be partly inspired by the fashion of Hasidic women. Chabad fashion designers Mimi Hecht and Mushky Notik who started their Mimu Maxi brand in the summer of 2013, originally with the Hasidic female community in mind, but soon the brand had gained a broader, loyal following. The pair has been referred to as "Hasidic Hipsters" on social media, and they have responded positively to that label. One Crown Heights resident established an eatery called "Hasid+Hipster". The eatery serves artisanal dishes while adhering to the laws of

Kashrut (also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, yi, כּשר), fro ...

. The owner, Yuda Schlass, told ''

The New York Jewish Week ''The Jewish Week'' is a weekly independent community newspaper targeted towards the Jewish community of the metropolitan New York City area. ''The Jewish Week'' covers news relating to the Jewish community in NYC. In March 2016, ''The Jewish We ...

'' "Me, myself, as much as I'm chasidic, I'm also hipster".Chernikoff, Helen
"Hipster And/Or Chasid? Grab lunch or dinner at Brooklyn's latest chic kosher food venture".
The Big Apple. ''The Jewish Week''. January 28, 2014. "Mason and Mug", a similarly styled "kosher-artisanal" restaurant was established in Crown Heights/Prospect Heights."Hassid+Hipster Brings Foodie Kosher Pop-Up To Crown Heights".
''JSpaceFood''. December 13, 2013. Chabad hipster musicians, such as Moshe Hecht and

DeScribe Shneur Hasofer is a Hasidic musician known as DeScribe. Hasofer's musical style has been characterized as "Hasidic hip-hop," "Hasidic rap" and "Hasidic R&B". Background Hasofer was born to a Chabad Hasidic family in Melbourne, Australia. Hasof ...

, have fused Jewish themes and contemporary music styles and genres. Similarly, the band

Zusha The Zusha (russian: Зуша) is a river in Tula and Oryol Oblast in Russia, a right tributary of the Oka. The length of the river is 234 km. The area of its basin is 6,950 km².folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

, and

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

with the wordless vocals of traditional Hasidic songs (known as '' niggunim''). The group cites as a spiritual advisor Rabbi Dov Yonah Korn of New York City's East Village Chabad House. Chabad on Campus rabbi

Simcha Weinstein Simon Weinstein, known by his Hebrew name Simcha Weinstein ( he, שמחה וינשטיין), is an English author and a rabbi. In 2006, his first book, '' Up Up and Oy Vey: How Jewish History, Culture and Values Shaped the Comic Book Superhero'', ...

, whose activities are based at Pratt Institute, has been termed one of "New York's Hippest Rabbis".

Outreach

Chabad emissaries operating in "hipster neighborhoods" have sought to reach out to Jewish hipsters and encourage them to perform traditional Jewish rituals and commandments (or ''

mitzvah In its primary meaning, the Hebrew word (; he, מִצְוָה, ''mīṣvā'' , plural ''mīṣvōt'' ; "commandment") refers to a commandment commanded by God to be performed as a religious duty. Jewish law () in large part consists of discus ...

s''). One event, titled "Unite the Beards", with the stated aim of "bridging the two communities", was organized by Chabad emissaries in Brooklyn. Chabad emissaries have established centers and organized services and events for young unaffiliated Jews in Dumbo, Williamsburg/Greenpoint, Fort Greene/Clinton Hill, Carroll Gardens and Prospect Heights.Bell, Kaitlin
"A Brooklyn Mitzvah: Converting the Hipsters."
''The New York Observer''. November 2, 2008.

"Hipster synagogues"

The

Soho Synagogue Soho Synagogue was a "Hipster (contemporary subculture), hipster" synagogue located in the SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan, New York (state), New York. On September 15, 2009, The SoHo Synagogue signed a 7-year lease for the ground floor of 43 Crosb ...

, established by Chabad emissaries in

SoHo, Manhattan SoHo, sometimes written Soho (South of Houston Street), is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, and has also been known for its variet ...

, has been branded as a "hipster synagogue." The synagogue is housed in a former "chic clothing store." Chabad of Bucktown-Wicker Park has been noted as the synagogue of one of "America’s Best Hipster Neighborhoods." The Chabad house attracts a number of local Jews to services and events.Sugar, Yehuda
"Rabbi Finds Home in One of America’s Trendiest Neighborhoods".
''Chabad.org''. October 25, 2012.

References

{{Chabad footer, state=expanded Ashkenazi Jewish culture in New York City Chabad-Lubavitch (Hasidic dynasty) Hipster (contemporary subculture) Jews and Judaism in Brooklyn

Background

Outreach

"Hipster synagogues"

See also

References