BS"D
Since there are people who criticize the religious Jews saying that they humiliate women and do not respect their dignity, it is proper to quote the words of the Gemora and the halachic authorities.
Yevomos 62b: The Rabbis learned: He who loves his wife as much as his own body, and honors her more than his own body... And this is what the Tur says in his introduction to Even Haezer: "Therefore it is proper for a man to live his wife as his own body and to honor her more than his own body, and to have mercy on her, and to protect her as he protects on of his limbs. Similarly, she must serve him and love him as her own self, because she was taken from him." If you go to those who are chareidim for the word of Hashem, you will see that the dignity of their wives is most important to them. And now they are coming to the chareidim and demanding that they respect the honor of women.
In Brochos 81: "One should walk after a lion, but not after a woman." From this it is obvious to anyone that this is why women should not be ahead of men.
And chareidim do not dishonor women, and if there was an incident, it does not reflect on the attitude of the chareidi community.
It is quoted from the Gra that when the world behaves badly toward the Jews it is a sign that there is Heavenly criticism of the Jewish people. It is also the case that when there is Heavenly criticism on the Jewish people as a whole there is bad behavior towards those who keep Torah and mitzvos. Given this, proofs against the complaints will have no effect on some of them because their intent is not for good but for evil.
May Hashem Who is good judge the world with justice and may He judge all peoples uprightly.
(Signed) A. Y. Shteinman
4 Teves 5772
