Yiddish is the perfect language of disdain. “Schmuck,” “schlemiel,” “putz,” “bupkus”, “tookus,” “schlep,” “shiksa,” ... what great words! It would be a shame to lose that lexicon.
Oy vay, Yud.
There are huge numbers of Orthodox Jews in NYC who speak nothing but Yiddish.
I rather suspect, however, that the author would not be interested in talking to them.
Growing up in the most Jewish neighborhood of Chicago, and watching dozens of Jewish comedians on TV, I gained a rich education in Yiddish!
Unfortunately, this is what happens to any language where there is a dominant language spoken in the schools, on TV, in the media, etc.
My DH knows a number of Yiddish (and Italian) expressions he heard growing up from “the old people” but doesn’t speak either — everything was English for his generation.
But, we DO use a lot of Yiddish words around the house because they’re FUN — kvetch, tchatchke, shtick — and most of the Italian swear words.
And, long may those those words live — and let’s keep them alive!!