Amish experience: Tourism dollars and televised depictions
It’s that Old World charm of the Amish that draws 8 million tourists – and $1.9 billion – each year to Pennsylvania’s Lancaster County, home of the nation’s largest Amish community of 31,000.
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- An Amish boy jumps on a trampoline at his home in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- A silhouetted Amish man waits during his buggy tour in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. It’s that Old World charm of the Amish that draws 8 million tourists – and $1.9 billion – each year to Pennsylvania’s Lancaster County, home of the nation’s largest Amish community of 31,000. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- Dan Roller photographs his wife, Sharon, seated on a buggy, at the Amish Experience, a tourism destination in the village of Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- Amish youths wait on customers at a farmer’s market produce booth in the village of Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- An Amish family walks to their friends’ house for a visit as seen on a buggy tour through Lancaster County, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- John Fisher, an Amish buggy driver, closes the door of his buggy during a tour through Lancaster County, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- John Fisher, an Amish buggy driver, leads tourists through Lancaster County, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- Amish dig a grave in a cemetery in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- A tour group listens to tour guide Joe Ditzler discuss Amish women’s clothing at the Amish Experience, a tourism destination in the village of Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- Haya Almekemi and Moaath, 5, visiting from Kuwait, shop for an example of Amish girls’ clothing at a gift shop within the Amish Experience, a tourism destination in the village of Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- Souvenirs are seen on sale at a gift shop within the Amish Experience, a tourism destination in the village of Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
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- An Amish boy sells painted horseshoes to tourists in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania August 9, 2014. (Mark Makela/Reuters)
What the Amish don’t do, supporters say, is tote rifles as part of a violent protection racket – as depicted in the television show “Amish Mafia” – or regularly defy their religion, like in “Breaking Amish” and “Breaking Amish: Brave New World.” And, Amish horror stories are not the norm, despite the plot lines of the upcoming “Amish Haunting.”
Filmmaker Mary Haverstick is leading a push to eject the shows, airing on the Discovery Channel and related networks, from Lancaster County. The movement is gathering support because of what some see as a demeaning, inaccurate portrayal of the gentle, devout group. But some wonder if the hard-edged reality TV approach is that different from the soft exploitation of the Amish by the local tourism industry. In both, the Amish are unpaid, costumed “extras.”
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