Leah Vincent was born into the Yeshivish community, a fundamentalist sect of ultra-Orthodox Judaism. The fifth of 11 children born to a prominent Orthodox rabbi in Pittsburgh. Leah and her ten siblings were raised to worship two things: God and the men who ruled their world.
At the age of 15, Leah was preparing for marriage. But the tradition-bound future Leah envisioned for herself was cut short when, at 16, she was caught exchanging letters with a male friend questioning her ultraorthodox Jewish faith.
Estranged: Leah Vincent was born into the Yeshivish community, a fundamentalist sect of ultra-Orthodox Judaism but she was shunned by her parents at the age of She had violated the religious law that forbids contact between members of the opposite sex. I was just too curious. My evil desires had momentarily led me astray,' she told the New York Post. Disappointing people. The final straw was when she purchased a sweater that her parents deemed immodest; she expressed an ambition to one day attend college and doubted the strict codes of conduct prescribed by her religion.
Afraid, in part, that her behavior would affect the marriage prospects of their other children, they put her on a plane to New York City before her 18th birthday and cut off ties. Video filmed by Haimy Assefa for Footsteps. It was there she learned about life in the real world but not before making a number of mistakes. In her Yeshivish community, there was a strict segregation of the sexes. In order to reach these goals, according to Vincent, a girl must:. Wear shirts buttoned to her neck with sleeves covering her elbows and with skirts that fall below the knee.
Even wearing patterned tights or wide belts are banned as too provocative. Abstain from talking to unmarried men. Be seen and not heard. The community frowned on women singing or talking too loudly. Orthodox Judaism: Women must abstain from talking to unmarried men. The community would frown on women singing or talking too loudly. Leah's parents believed that anything to the contrary would jeopardize her chances of finding a husband.
