'Amish Paradise': Who are the Amish?

Amish people live all over the United States, but their community is often misunderstood. The Amish are a Christian group who strive for simple lives. Hence, they isolate themselves from modern luxuries such as cars, phones, and electricity. They stay within their close knit communities and further the divide between themselves and non-Amish people by calling modern technology and those who use it "English."

While there are no Amish communities in California, there are roughly 400,000 Amish people in the USA. To put that in perspective, the estimated total population of the United States is 340 million people, meaning that 1 in every 850 people is Amish. For a group that is relatively common, little is known about them among non-Amish "English" people.

One practice most Amish communities have in common is using a horse and buggy for transportation. According to Elizabethtown College, North American Amish communities are located in 32 states and four Canadian provinces.

When asked what they know about the Amish, a Liberty High School student replied, “I know that they’re pretty traditional, I know that they rebuke technology, I know that they make their own milk and churn their own butter.”

Liberty freshman Tyler Holton said he knew, “Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I know they build houses really fast. But other than that, nothing.”

What is known is that most, if not all, Amish families live on farms. They grow an assortment of crops like corn, wheat, hay, and all sorts of vegetables. However, they don’t grow crops for profit, they grow crops to feed their families and their livestock. They are almost entirely self-sufficient, rarely needing supplies from the outside world.

Amish families are considered large by most people; some families have more than 10 children. In these family systems, every child has a role. Once they’re old enough, the sons of a family will be dispersed among the farm, tasked with milking cows, gathering eggs, and harvesting crops. When the daughters of a family reach the age of 14, they are taught how to cook, clean, and be a good wife for their future husband.

However, not all Amish children want to be a part of their community. An estimated 10% of Amish teens consider or attempt to run away from the Amish community. One teen who ran away was Eli Yoder; after leaving the Amish community, he helped other Amish teens connect to the "English" world. Even though he ran away, Yoder mentions the good sides of Amish people and the positive aspects of their community.

A common misconception about Amish people is that arranged marriages are the norm, however, Amish people meet and fall in love with their partners the same way non-Amish people do. They typically meet their partner at school or church, where they learn more about and spend time with each other.