The Algemeiner reports that Agudath Israel of America, an umbrella organization representing Orthodox Jews, on Monday sent an open letter to the Pulitzer Prize board urging them not to reward the New York Times with a Pulitzer Prize for their series of articles on New York City Hasidic schools.

Sent via Agudath’s KnowUs project, the letter accuses the Times of engaging in “a relentless campaign of overwhelmingly negative depictions of Orthodox and Hasidic Jews, their educational institutions, and their lives.”

“It is not the habit of Agudath Israel of America to interlope or intervene in the deliberations of the Pulitzer Prize Board; we believe this is the first occasion Agudath Israel has done so in its 100-year history,” the letter says. “However, in light of the palpable pain in the community, present danger on the streets, and unbalanced and inaccurate reporting, we felt compelled to pen this letter.”

Avrohom Weinstock, Chief of Staff at Agudath Israel of America, told The Algemeiner that the depiction of Orthodox communities in the articles was “beyond recognition” and that Pulitzer Prize should be “off the table.”

“In this moment, one of the most influential newspapers in the world decided to paint a target on our backs, 17 times in 6 months, with lengthy, one-sided articles eviscerating numerous facets of Orthodox and Hasidic Jewish life,” Weinstock said in an interview with The Algemeiner.

“The letter mentions this backdrop but focuses, in a rigorously sourced way, on how the Times stories were not only hurtful to many, but were disingenuously sourced, employed misleading data, intentionally suppressed contrary information, and really kind of took the unsuspecting reader who may have little real-world interaction with Orthodox Jews, for a lurid ride.”

The Pulitzer Prizes do not announce their finalist nominations in advance. The prizes are expected to be awarded in May.

The Pulitzer Prizes and the New York Times did not respond to The Algemeiner’s request for comment.

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