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Yeoville

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Yeoville is an inner city neighbourhood of Johannesburg , in the province of Gauteng , South Africa . It is located in Region F (previously Region 8 ). Originally intended as a "well-to-do" neighbourhood, it instead developed into a white working class and lower middle class area as the city expanded northwards and public rail access improved. From the 1920s onwards it became a significant enclave of German Jewish and Eastern European Jewish immigrants. It was designated as a "white area" under the Group Areas Act during the apartheid era. It became a "grey area" in the 1980s, as a limited number of non-white residents began to rent in the area. From the end of the 1970s, a growing number of night clubs and galleries opened in Yeoville, or relocated from Hillbrow . This led to the neighbourhood becoming the leading nightspot in the city.The white population began to decline in the 1970s, and this white flight accelerated in the early to mid 1990s, with most residents migrating to the northern suburbs. Today, it is widely known and celebrated for its diverse, pan-African population but notorious for its high levels of crime, poverty and degradation.

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72-404: It is part of Greater Yeoville, a greater territory combining Bellevue , Bellevue East and Yeoville itself and its size, crime, poverty and population density levels is somewhat comparable to nearby Hillbrow . Yeoville is home to Yeoville Boys Primary School, Yeoville Market and Yeoville recreational centre. Yeoville was proclaimed as a suburb in 1890 (four years after the discovery of gold led to

144-584: A Chanukah campaign to encourage all Jews worldwide to light their own menorah. After all tin menorahs were given out that year, a military manufacturer was commissioned to make tens of thousands of additional menorahs for distribution. In 1974, a public lighting of a Chanukah menorah was held by the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and in years following menorah lightings on public grounds were conducted in cities worldwide. Legal challenges to

216-486: A bad reputation for public alcohol consumption and illegal street dealings such as guns and drugs. The neighbourhood shares all its characteristics (both positive and negative) with surrounding and adjacent Yeoville This Gauteng location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Menachem Mendel Schneerson Menachem Mendel Schneerson (April 5, 1902 OS  – June 12, 1994; AM 11 Nissan 5662 – 3 Tammuz 5754), known to adherents of

288-463: A break. During the talks, Schneerson demonstrated a unique approach in explaining seemingly different concepts by analysis of the fundamental principle common to the entire tractate, and referenced both classic and esoteric sources from all periods, citing entire sections by heart. In 1951 Schneerson established a Chabad women's and girl's organization and a youth organization in Israel. Their mission

360-429: A campaign for the daily study of Maimonides 's Mishneh Torah . Each year at the completion of the learning cycle there is Siyum celebration marking the end of the cycle and beginning of the new one. These events have been attended by many Jewish leaders. In 1986, Schneerson began a custom where each Sunday he would stand outside his office, greet people briefly, give them a dollar bill and encourage them to donate to

432-476: A car in convoy with Schneerson's motorcade accidentally struck two Guyanese American children while running a red light. One of the children was killed. The incident triggered the Crown Heights riot . After the death of Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn in 1950, Chabad followers began persuading Schneerson to succeed his father-in-law as Rebbe on the basis of his scholarship, piety, and dynasty. Schneerson

504-507: A day and never took a day of vacation. He rarely left Brooklyn except for visits to his father-in-law's gravesite in Queens, New York. Schneerson was opposed to retirement, seeing it as a waste of precious years. In 1972, on the occasion of his 70th birthday, instead of announcing a retirement plan, Schneerson proposed the establishment of 71 new institutions to mark the beginning of the 71st year of his life. The only other time he left Brooklyn

576-674: A decline in trade as Sandton developed a commercial centre, attracting shoppers away from the CBD and surrounding neighbourhood. The social makeup included a growing number of artists, musicians, writers, filmmakers, students and political activists. Although the area was designated as a "white area" under the Group Areas Act , it became a "grey area" in the 1980s as coloured, Indian and black people began to move in. The trend stemmed from Berea and Hillbrow as all three neighbourhoods had surplus of unoccupied apartments. This also occurred in

648-477: A full recovery from the heart attack with few if any noticeable lasting effects or changes to his work habits. Fifteen years later Schneerson suffered a serious stroke while praying at the grave of his father-in-law . The stroke left him unable to speak, and paralyzed on the right side of his body. During this time, the hope that Schneerson could be revealed as the Messiah (Moshiach) became more widespread. On

720-714: A global campaign to promote awareness of the Supreme Being and observance of the Noahide Laws among all people, arguing that this was the basis for human rights for all civilization. Several times each year his addresses were broadcast on national television. On these occasions Schneerson would address the public on general communal affairs and issues relating to world peace such as a moment of silence in U.S. public schools, increased government funding for solar energy research, U.S. foreign aid to developing countries and nuclear disarmament. In 1984, Schneerson initiated

792-529: A guide to his son for the rest of his life. Many years later, when he once reminisced about his youth, Schneerson said "I have the education of the first-born son of the rabbi of Yekaterinoslav. When it comes to saving lives, I speak up whatever others may say." Schneerson went on to receive separate rabbinical ordinations from the Rogatchover Gaon, Joseph Rosen , and Yechiel Yaakov Weinberg , author of Sridei Aish . In 1923, Schneerson visited

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864-576: A lack of access to consistent running water, unreliable garbage disposal and a rise in illegal dumping sites. The infrastructure challenges coupled with an increasing population were exacerbated during the COVID 19 pandemic . Bellevue, Gauteng Bellevue is an inner city neighbourhood of Johannesburg , Gauteng Province , South Africa . Close to the Johannesburg CBD with the neighbourhood surrounded by Yeoville and Observatory . It

936-520: A pair of Jewish architect brothers, Louis Theodore Obel and Mark Obel, who were also responsible for Astor Mansions and the Circle Court . It has a blue plaque , recognising its heritage value. Another notable apartment building is Eltruda Court on Kenmere Road. It was designed by architects Gerson Davids and G.K. Haas and completed in 1950. Since the early 1920s, the suburb was home to a growing and stable community of Jewish residents. Yeoville

1008-482: A period of decline from the late 1970s, several nightclubs and art galleries relocated to Yeoville. Startup businesses also flourished and the neighbourhood emerged as the main nighttime destination in Johannesburg. However, this came at the expense of existing community shops that were unable to meet the rising rent costs or were converted into cafes and clubs. Shopkeepers on Rocky-Raleigh were also beginning to see

1080-402: A private education and was tutored by Zalman Vilenkin from 1909 through 1913. When Schneerson was 11 years old, Vilenkin informed his father that he had nothing more to teach his son. At that point, Levi Yitzchak began teaching his son Talmud and rabbinic literature , as well as Kabbalah. Schneerson proved gifted in both Talmudic and Kabbalistic study and also took exams as an external student of

1152-461: A special occasion, such as a bride and groom for their wedding or a boy and his family on the occasion of a bar mitzvah. During his four decades as Rebbe, Schneerson would deliver regular addresses, centered on the weekly Torah portion and on various tractates of the Talmud. These talks, delivered without text or notes, would last for several hours, and sometimes went for eight or nine hours without

1224-400: A system of "mitzvah campaigns" to encourage the observance of ten basic Jewish practices, such as tefillin for men, Shabbat candles for women, and loving your fellow for all people. Schneersohn's campaign brought the concept of tefillin to Jewish men everywhere, and he has been referred to as "the great modern popularizer of tefillin". Until his campaign, tefillin was largely the domain of

1296-505: Is located in Region F of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality . It shares the same praise and notoriety as its surrounding neighbourhood Yeoville. The neighbourhood today is usually called Yeoville due to their very close proximity, same demographics and notoriety, leading to the whole area now known as Greater Yeoville, combining Bellevue, Bellevue East and Yeoville. It is home to

1368-558: Is often referred to as "Sunday Dollars". Schneerson's wife, Chaya Mushka Schneerson died in 1988. During the week of shiva Schneerson wrote a will in which he bequeathed his entire estate to Agudas Chasidei Chabad , the Chabad umbrella organization. During a talk in 1991, Schneerson spoke passionately about Moshiach (the Messiah ) and told his followers that he had done all that he could to bring world peace and redemption, but that it

1440-459: Is recognized as the pioneer of Jewish outreach . During his lifetime, many of his adherents believed that he was the Messiah . His own attitude to the subject, and whether he openly encouraged this, is hotly debated among academics. During Schneerson's lifetime, the messianic controversy and other issues elicited fierce criticism from many quarters in the Orthodox world, especially earning him

1512-743: The Chabad-Lubavitch movement as the Lubavitcher Rebbe or simply the Rebbe , was a Russian-American Orthodox rabbi and the most recent Rebbe of the Lubavitch Hasidic dynasty . He is considered one of the most influential Jewish leaders of the 20th century. As leader of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, he took an insular Hasidic group that almost came to an end with the Holocaust and transformed it into one of

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1584-701: The Tzemach Tzedek , from whom he was a direct patrilineal descendant. In 1907, when Schneerson was five years old, the family moved to Yekatrinoslav (today, Dnipro ), where Rabbi Levi Yitzchak was appointed Chief Rabbi of the city. He served until 1939, when he was exiled by the Soviets to Kazakhstan . Schneerson had two younger brothers: Dov Ber "Berel" Schneerson, who was murdered in 1944 by Nazi collaborators , and Yisroel Aryeh Leib "Leibel" Schneerson, who died in 1952 while completing doctoral studies at Liverpool University . During his youth, he received

1656-592: The University of Berlin . He would later recall that he enjoyed Erwin Schrödinger 's lectures. His father-in-law took great pride in his erudite son-in-law's scholarly attainments and paid for all the tuition expenses and helped facilitate his studies throughout. During his stay in Berlin, his father-in-law encouraged him to become more of a public figure, but Schneerson described himself as an introvert, and

1728-439: The 1940s until its closure in 1964. In August 1967, Yeoville Synagogue was the target of a burglary. In the same period, the suburb's ultra-orthodox synagogue was also targeted and the sanctuary was desecrated. The archives were broken into and record books stolen along with other items. By the 1970s, the suburb had a predominantly Jewish character, with a number of synagogues in the area and Jewish delicatessens and bakeries in

1800-560: The 1940s, Schneerson became a naturalized US citizen and seeking to contribute to the war effort, he volunteered at the Brooklyn Navy Yard , using his electrical engineering background to draw wiring diagrams for the battleship USS Missouri (BB-63) , and other classified military work. In 1942 Schneerson launched the Merkos Shlichus program where he would send pairs of yeshiva students to remote locations across

1872-651: The Nazis , the Schneersons fled to Vichy , and later to Nice , where they stayed until their final escape from Europe in 1941. In 1941, Schneerson escaped from Europe via Lisbon , Portugal. On the eve of his departure, Schneerson penned a treatise where he revealed his vision for the future of world Jewry and humanity. He and his wife Chaya Mushka arrived in New York on June 23, 1941. Shortly after his arrival, his father-in-law appointed him director and chairman of

1944-526: The Rebbe to do it for them, saying: "Now listen, Jews. Generally, in Chabad it has been demanded that each individual work on themselves, and not rely on the Rebbes. One must, on their own , transform the folly of materialism and the passion of the 'animal soul' to holiness. I do not, God Forbid, recuse myself from assisting as much as possible, however; if one does not work on themselves , what good will submitting notes, singing songs, and saying lechayim do?" At

2016-817: The Schneersons left Berlin and moved to Paris, where Menachem Mendel (known as "RaMash" before accepting the leadership of Chabad ) continued his religious and communal activities on behalf of his father-in-law, Yosef Yitzchak. While in Paris he took a two-year course in engineering at a vocational college, where he was a mediocre student; this was his only formal secular education. During that time, Yosef Yitzchak recommended that Professor Alexander Vasilyevitch Barchenko consult with Schneerson regarding various religious and mystical matters, and prominent rabbis, such as Yerachmiel Binyaminson and Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler turned to Schneerson with their rabbinic and kabbalistic queries. On June 11, 1940, three days before Paris fell to

2088-571: The Talmudic genius known as the Rogachover Gaon . In 1933 he also met with Chaim Elazar Shapiro , as well as with Talmudist Shimon Shkop . During this time he kept a diary in which he would carefully document his private conversations with his father-in-law, as well as his kabbalistic correspondence with his father, Levi Yitzchak Schneerson. In 1933, after the Nazis took over Germany ,

2160-614: The United States and Canada, Schneerson delivered a Hasidic discourse (Ma'amar) , the equivalent to a President-elect taking the oath of office, and formally became the Rebbe. On the night of his acceptance, members of the Israeli Cabinet and Israel's Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Herzog sent him congratulatory messages. Reiterating a longstanding core Chabad principle at his inaugural talk, he demanded that each individual exert themselves in advancing spiritually, and not rely on

2232-442: The United States. The Iranian government's hostility towards the United States was seen by Schneerson as behavior that could threaten the country's status as an "untouchable" superpower, and that would cause it to try to appease Arab countries, thus "endanger[ing] the security of Israel". As a result of Schneerson's efforts, several thousand Iranian children were flown from Iran to the safety of New York. In 1983 Schneerson launched

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2304-529: The Yeoville Hotel. The suburb is situated on part of an old Witwatersrand farm called Doornfontein . It was established in 1890 and is either named after the land developer Bellevue Township Syndicate or the view of the city to the west and view to the Magaliesberg mountain range in the north. Rockey Street is known for its lively bars and clubs, a hotspot for black nightlife although has

2376-723: The arts. The area north of Raleigh Street was mostly populated by Orthodox Jewish families. Synagogues, Kosher stores and religious schools served this community. For a number of years, the community was also served by Chabad Lubavitch rabbi, Rabbi Yossie and Rebbetzin Raisy Hecht. Rabbi Yossie, a New York native, was a disciple of the Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson . In the 1960s, future president Nelson Mandela sought refuge at an apartment on Webb Street in Yeoville. As Hillbrow entered into

2448-551: The central Lubavitch synagogue on Eastern Parkway. After his wedding to Chaya Mushka in 1928, Schneerson and his wife moved to Berlin in the Weimar Republic (now part of Germany ) where he was assigned specific communal tasks by his father-in-law Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, who also requested that he write scholarly annotations to the responsa and various hasidic discourses of the earlier Rebbes of Chabad-Lubavitch. Schneerson studied mathematics, physics, and philosophy at

2520-400: The charity of their choice. Explaining his reason for encouraging charitable giving among all people, Schneerson quoted his father-in-law who said that "when two people meet, it should bring benefit to a third." People in line would often take this opportunity to ask Schneerson for advice or request a blessing. Thousands of people attended this event each week, which lasted up to six hours, and

2592-449: The community. In 1947 Schneerson traveled to Paris, to take his mother, Chana Schneerson , back to New York City with him. Schneerson would visit her every day and twice each Friday and prepare her a tea. In 1964, Chana Schneerson died. On February 10, 1988, Schneerson's wife, Chaya Mushka Schneerson died. A year after the death of his wife, when the traditional year of Jewish mourning had passed, Schneerson moved into his study above

2664-422: The context of an aging white population, high levels of social mobility among white youth and the cosmopolitan character of Yeoville. Therefore, there was only tepid political resistance from the resident white population to the non-white newcomers. The progressive politics in the neighbourhood and concentration of artists led to levels of racial mixing that were then uncommon in the apartheid era. The Group Areas Act

2736-597: The country during their summer vacations to teach Jews in isolated communities about their heritage and offer education to their children. As chairman and editor in chief of Kehot , Schneerson published the works of the earlier Rebbes of Chabad. He also published his own works including the Hayom Yom in 1943 and Hagadda in 1946. On a visit to Paris in 1947 he established a school for girls and worked with local organizations to assist with housing for refugees and displaced persons . Schneerson often explained that his goal

2808-422: The cricketer Ali Bacher . The political activists, Esther Barsel and her husband Hymie Barsel also lived in the suburb. A number of Jewish artists also lived in Yeoville. The singer, Johnny Clegg, grew up in the suburb. Sinclair Beiles , a beat poet settled in Yeoville and was part of the 1980s artistic milieu at the time. In the 1980s, the area south of Raleigh Street attracted students and those working in

2880-551: The defensive. We need to go on the offensive." As Rebbe, Schneerson would receive visitors for private meetings, known as yechidus , on Sunday and Thursday evenings. Those meetings would begin at 8 pm and often continue until five or six in the morning and were open to everyone. Schneerson, who spoke several languages including English, Yiddish, Hebrew, Aramaic, French, Russian, German and Italian, would converse with people on all issues and offer his advice on both spiritual and mundane matters. Politicians and leaders from across

2952-620: The enmity of Rabbi Elazar Shach . In 1978, the U.S. Congress asked President Jimmy Carter to designate Schneerson's birthday as the national Education Day in the U.S. It has been since commemorated as Education and Sharing Day. In 1994, Schneerson was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal for his "outstanding and lasting contributions toward improvements in world education, morality, and acts of charity". Schneerson's resting place attracts both Jews and non-Jews for prayer. Menachem Mendel Schneerson

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3024-521: The founding of Johannesburg) by Thomas Yeo Sherwell, who came from Yeovil in the United Kingdom . The area was advertised as a "sanitarium for the rich" in which the air was purer because it was up on a ridge overlooking the dirty, smoke-filled mining town that had sprung from nothing out of the (then) Transvaal bushveld. However, the rich did not buy into the suburb. Instead it became a multiclass area, one to which many poorer people living below

3096-416: The globe came to meet him, but Schneerson showed no preference to one person over another. His secretary once even declined to admit John F. Kennedy because Schneerson was already meeting 'ordinary' people who had requested appointments months previously. Those meetings were discontinued in 1982 when it became impossible to accommodate the large number of people. Meetings were then held only for those who had

3168-686: The increase in Torah study by women as one of the "positive innovations of the later generations". That same year, Schneerson sent his first emissary to Morocco , and established schools and a synagogue for the Moroccan Jewish community . In 1958 Schneerson established schools and synagogues in Detroit, Michigan , in Milan, Italy , and in London, England . Beginning in the 1960s, Schneerson instituted

3240-500: The lack of potential investors, some property owners abandoned their vacant buildings. In their absence, squatters have posed as the legitimate owners and charge rent to tenants, while often refusing to maintain the buildings. In 1998, the Yeoville Community Development Forum (YCDF), a forum from the 1970s, was revived to tackle urban decay in the neighbourhood. The 1990s were also challenging for

3312-716: The lightings on public grounds reached the Supreme Court and it was ruled that public lightings did not violate the Constitution. Public lightings continue in thousands of cities today. Chabad established an annual Lag BaOmer parade at '770', one of the largest celebrations of its kind, where thousands of Jews celebrate the holiday. In 1979, during the Iranian Revolution and Iranian hostage crisis , Schneerson directed arrangements to rescue Jewish youth and teenagers from Iran and bring them to safety in

3384-568: The local Soviet school. He was considered an illui and genius, and by the time he was 17, he had mastered the entire Talmud , some 5,422 pages, as well as all its early commentaries . Throughout his childhood, Schneerson was involved in the affairs of his father's office. He was also said to have acted as an interpreter between the Jewish community and the Russian authorities on a number of occasions. Levi Yitzchak's courage and principles were

3456-450: The local housing market. The redlining imposed by the banks was deemed illegal and economic apartheid. This has allowed for the emergence of a black middle class in the area. The informal economy has grown exponentially since the 1990s. A collapse in service delivery, government neglect, corruption, xenophobia and a consistently high crime rates are some of the primary challenges in the neighbourhood. The infrastructure challenges include

3528-644: The main business street. Harry Schwarz , a well known Jewish lawyer and politician was Member of Parliament for Yeoville from 1974 to 1991. In 1986, Tony Leon was elected to the Johannesburg City Council for Yeoville. Ronnie Kasrils , a cabinet minister in post-apartheid governments, was also born and raised in the suburb. Kasrils had his bar mitzvah at Yeoville Synagogue. The politician Joe Slovo also spent part of his childhood living in Yeoville, having moved from Doornfontein . Both Kasrils and Slovo attended Yeoville Boys Primary School, as did

3600-400: The meticulously observant. Following the death of his mother Chana Schneerson in 1964, Schneerson began to offer an additional weekly sermon in her memory. These sermons consisted of original insights and unprecedented analysis of Rashi's Torah commentary, which were delivered at the regular public gatherings. Schneerson gave these sermons each week until 1992. In 1973, Schneerson started

3672-634: The morning of June 12, 1994 ( 3 Tammuz 5754), Schneerson died at the Beth Israel Medical Center and was buried at the Ohel next to his father-in-law, Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, at Montefiore Cemetery in Queens, New York. Shortly after Schneerson's death, the executors of his will discovered several notebooks in a drawer in his office, in which Schneerson had written his scholarly thoughts and religious musings from his earliest years. The majority of entries in these journals date between

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3744-497: The most influential movements in religious Jewry, with an international network of over 5,000 educational and social centers. The institutions he established include kindergartens, schools, drug-rehabilitation centers, care-homes for the disabled, and synagogues. Schneerson's published teachings fill more than 400 volumes, and he is noted for his contributions to Jewish continuity and religious thought, as well as his wide-ranging contributions to traditional Torah scholarship. He

3816-539: The neighbourhood as it experienced the wave of HIV / AIDS . Since 2000, the population has grown exponentially. This has been driven by the arrival of refugees and immigrants from Zimbabwe , Mozambique , Malawi , Nigeria , Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo . South African citizens now account for less than half of the neighbourhood's residents. There have been some signs of recovery in

3888-533: The neighourhood. Some shops adapted by directing products towards lower income customers. These changes were accompanied by an increase in crime that led to divestment from existing homeowners and leaving the neighbourhood. In 1990, the National Party said that it would not pursue a vacated seat by the Democratic Party in a by-election in Yeoville. At the time, both parties were fearful about

3960-551: The occasion of his ninetieth birthday they would be publishing a special issue and wanted to know what his message to the world was. Schneerson replied that "'Ninety', in Hebrew , is ' tzaddik '; which means 'righteous.' And that is a direct indication for every person to become a real tzaddik—a righteous person, and to do so for many years, until 120. "This message", Schneerson added, "applies equally to Jews and non-Jews". During his decades of leadership, Schneerson worked over 18 hours

4032-520: The potential electoral success of the Conservative Party . The agreement was made, as the DP incumbent, Harry Schwarz prepared to vacate the seat to take on the role of South African ambassador to the United States . The migration of white residents northwards, that had started in the late 70s, accelerated in the 1990s. In 1991 Yeoville had a white majority (79%), with most residents leaving in

4104-464: The ridge in Doornfontein aspired. It was also a place which attracted many of the waves of migrants from abroad that came to South Africa seeking a new life. The area contains diverse architectural styles, in 1904, House Hains was built and designed by James Cope Christie , and it is now a designated provincial heritage site. Beacon Royal was built in 1934 on Grafton Road by Obel & Obel,

4176-474: The same talk, Schneerson said "one must go to a place where nothing is known of Godliness, nothing is known of Judaism, nothing is even known of the Hebrew alphabet, and while there to put oneself aside and ensure that the other calls out to God." When he spoke to Forward journalist Asher Penn that year, he said, "...we must stop insisting that Judaism is in danger, an assertion that does little but place Jewry on

4248-489: The sixth Chabad -Lubavitch Rebbe, Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn , for the first time. He met the rabbi's middle daughter Chaya Mushka (Mousia) – they were distant cousins. Sometime later they became engaged, but were not married until 1928 in Warsaw , Poland. Taking great pride in his son-in-law's outstanding scholarship, Yosef Yitzchak asked him to engage in learned conversation with the great Torah scholars that were present at

4320-473: The succeeding years. By 1998 the neighourbood had a black majority (84%). In 1995, the murder of a Jamaican restaurateur, Ridley Wright placed increased attention on the presence of drug dealers in the neighbourhood. A significant factor in the decline and divestment in the area has been the decision taken by banks to redline the neighbourhood. In effect, this down not allow 100% bonds for Yeoville businesses and homes. This has led to waning property values. Given

4392-435: The three Chabad central organizations, Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch , Machneh Israel and Kehot Publication Society , placing him at the helm of the movement's Jewish educational, social services, and publishing networks. Over the next decade, Yosef Yitzchak referred many of the scholarly questions that had been inquired of him to his son-in-law. He became increasingly known as a personal representative of Yosef Yitzchak. During

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4464-419: The wedding, such as Meir Shapiro and Menachem Ziemba . Menachem Mendel and Chaya Mushka were married for 60 years, and were childless. Menachem Mendel Schneerson and Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn were both descendants of Menachem Mendel Schneersohn, known as the Tzemach Tzedek , the third Rebbe of Chabad Lubavitch . Schneerson later commented that the day of his marriage bound the community to him and him to

4536-562: The years 1928 and 1950 and were subsequently published. Following age-old Jewish tradition that the resting place of a tzadik is holy, Schneerson's gravesite is viewed by many as a holy site and has been described by the Yedioth Ahronoth as "the American Western Wall", where thousands of people, Jews and non-Jews, go to pray each week. Many more send faxes and e-mails with requests for prayers to be read at

4608-653: Was born on April 5, 1902 ( OS ) (11 Nisan , 5662), in the Black Sea port of Nikolaev in the Russian Empire (now Mykolaiv in Ukraine ). His father was rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneerson , a renowned Talmudic scholar and authority on Kabbalah and Jewish law . His mother was Rebbetzin Chana Schneerson ( née  Yanovski ). He was named after the third Chabad rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneersohn ,

4680-607: Was distinct in that it emerged as an enclave for German Jewish immigrants. These immigrants were usually highly-educated, had held top professional positions in Germany . Many also practiced Reform Judaism in Germany, which they introduced to Johannesburg. Herbert House on South Street was the first boarding house of the SA Jewish Board of Education. It served Jewish students from country districts and border countries from

4752-495: Was known to plead with acquaintances not to make a fuss over the fact that he was the son-in-law of Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn. While in Berlin, Schneerson met Joseph B. Soloveitchik and the two formed a friendship that remained between them years later when they both emigrated to America. He wrote hundreds of pages of his own original Torah discourses, and conducted a serious interchange of halachic correspondence with many of Eastern Europe's leading rabbinic figures, including

4824-411: Was now up to them to continue this task: "I have done my part, from now on you do all that you can." A few months later, when a reporter from CNN came to meet him at dollars, he said, "Moshiach is ready to come now, it is only on our part to do something additional in the realm of goodness and kindness." On Sunday, March 1, 1992, Gabriel Erem, the editor of Lifestyles Magazine told Schneerson that on

4896-413: Was reluctant, and actively refused to accept leadership of the movement. He continued, however, all the communal activities he had previously headed. It would take a full year until he was persuaded by the elders of the movement to accept the post. On the first anniversary of his father-in-law's passing, 10 Shevat 1951, in a ceremony attended by several hundred rabbis and Jewish leaders from all parts of

4968-565: Was repealed in 1991, meaning that all race groups could now legally rent or buy property in the neighbourhood. However, Yeoville's position as a premier nighttime spot began to wane in the 1990s as Melville began to attract Yeoville's clientele. The loss of this clientele made the remaining bars and businesses reliant on a clientele more engaged in antisocial behaviour such as crime and excessive drinking. The changing clientele and an increase in poorer residents meant that several established shops and businesses were no longer viable to operate from

5040-431: Was to "make the world a better place", and to do what he could to eliminate all suffering. In a letter to Israeli President Yitzchak Ben Tzvi , Schneerson wrote that when he was a child the vision of the future redemption began to take form in his imagination "a redemption of such magnitude and grandeur through which the purpose of the suffering, the harsh decrees and annihilation of exile will be understood ..." In 1991,

5112-435: Was to engage in outreach which was exclusively directed at women and teens. In 1953 he opened branches of these organizations in New York, London and Toronto. In a marked departure from an entrenched tendency to limit high-level Torah education to men and boys, Schneerson equally addressed his teachings to both genders. He addressed meetings of the organizations, and led gatherings exclusively for women. Schneerson would describe

5184-408: Was when he visited Camp Gan Israel Parksville, New York in 1956, 1957 and 1960. In 1977, during the hakafot ceremony on Shemini Atzeret , Schneerson suffered a heart attack . At his request, rather than transporting him to a hospital, the doctors set up a mini-hospital at his office where he was treated for the next four weeks by doctors Bernard Lown , Ira Weiss, and Larry Resnick. He made

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