I live in the Town of Ramapo in Rockland County, and I can tell you a thing or two about the Orthodox Jews. While one might think its great on the national level that they vote as a block for President Bush, they also vote as a block on the local level. Ramapo is a surburb of NYC, about 25 miles north of Manhattan. We have long had a large population of Orthodox Jews who, by voting as a block (and other, less scrupulous means), exert enormous influence on the Town Supervisor and Town Board to change illegally change zoning to permit multiple family dwellings in areas zoned single family. This destroys neighborhoods. In addition, they convert many of these dwellings into temples, to avoid paying taxes. They also engage in "block busting". They offer an exorbinant price for a house or 2 in a neighborhood, and then after they get in they but up the rest of the properties on the cheap. Twice now, they have come to my mother in law's house, offering her cash on the spot for the property.
Did they force your Mother out of her house? Did they threaten her in any way? If not, sounds like stuff that happens every day in communities across the country.