Answers to Questions by Yair Davidiy
If Israel is supposed to be civilized, how come they have separate sidewalks for men and women?
Answer:
They do not have separate sidewalks for men and women EXCEPT for one section of one street for some hours of the day.
The street in question is Mea Shearim in Jerusalem. It is an old street and kept that way because its quaint appearance is reminiscent of a previous era and this attracts tourists.
The street is busy. The footpaths are narrow and almost non-existent in some places and this despite heavy traffic. This is a residential area as well as a shopping center as well as the focus of numerous yeshivot and study halls in addition to nearby workshops and small-scale industries. There are people going to and fro all day long including many children. The residents are extremely religious and avoid physical contact between men and women. It makes sense that the pathways be segregated for some hours of the day. This is what the people want and need.
Why is this considered not civilized?
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There are however numerous streets and whole neighborhoods in many Israeli cities including Jerusalem where Jews (religious or not) cannot go.
These are Arab areas.
In these places Jewish women will be molested or otherwise harassed. Jews will have stones and other projectiles thrown at them. They will be cursed and threatened and may be attacked.
The police are not liable to do anything.
The attitude of the authorities is that such is the reality and we are better off accepting it and/or pretending that the phenomenon does not exist.
Why is there no protest on this matter?
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A related issue is separate seating on some of the bus lines.
See:
#3. Brit-Am On the Ground Jerusalem Report.
The Buses. Part One.
http://www.britam.org/JN3/JN978....
Extract:
The Israeli general public understands the Hareidi position and sympathizes with it.
cf.
Poll: 51% say 'kosher buses' legitimate
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/
0,7340,L-4171689,00.html
Ynet-Gesher survey shows more than half of population believes segregated bus lines may operate in haredi areas, while 47% of Israeli Jews view it as forbidden discrimination against women.
And are the women really discriminated against?
A government Poll of women in Tel Aviv showed that in general more than 70% had experienced what they considered to be sexual harassment.
45% had experienced sexual harassment while using public transportation.
Tel Aviv is a secular non-religious region. This is what happens in non-Orthodox areas.
Most Orthodox women prefer the separate seating arrangement.
If nothing else it is more convenient. And it is safer.
They enter via the second door with their children, shopping baskets, and prams and do not have to wait in line to present or buy their tickets.
There is often more room in the back. There are also no males who might otherwise ogle, make unwelcome remarks, or worse.
The women feel less inhibited and free to chat with each other or simply relax and enjoy the trip.
All the provocations that have recently occurred were made by outsiders some of whom have a political and ideological agenda of their own.
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#3. Foreign Interference in Israeli Affairs. Part Two of The Buses. The Anti-Jewish Aspect.
http://www.britam.org/JN3/JN980....
Extract:
Elements in the left-wing backed by foreign NGO Foundation money had been planning for months an attack on the Hareidim.
This was to be used as a tool to undermine the Natanyahu Government of Israel and devalue the Jewish Religion.
See Also:
HaModia January 12, 2012. Israel News, Investigative Report by A. Pe'er p.A23ff.
"Pulling the Stings Behind the Incitement Campaign".
http://hamodia.com/inthepaper.cf...
Despite the fact that anti-Government forces were involved in the incitement, several leading Israeli politicians joined the band in condemning Hariedi extremism and defending females. Hareidim were cursed in the street. Hareidi children were spat upon and struck.
Ethiopian migrants hit a little Jewish Hareid girl and spat on her saying they were taking revenge for the Beit Shemesh incident. The Hareidim felt the public at large was being mislead.
The Propaganda was correctly compared to that the Gentiles had used in Europe when preparing themselves for a pogrom against Jews.
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#3. Bare-Breasts in the Bus.
The Buses part 3.
http://www.britam.org/JN3/JN987....
Extract:
If a woman wants to breast-feed her child on a bus why should there not be a separate females-only section for her to do it in?
What is the problem with separate gender seating on lines where more than 90% of the consumers want it?
The distinct impression is that most of the feminist activists and their male aficionados who demonstrate against separate seating do not normally travel on buses.
If they do they certainly do not usually use the same lines as the Chareidim.
The Chareidim are in effect exploited by the authorities and bus line services. They are forbidden to run their own lines and have to use the Government authorized Eged bus-service monopoly.
They consequently receive less buses per line than is accepted and suffer from bad service.
If anything the subsequent unwarranted over-crowding on unmixed lines creates a feeling of uneasiness and results in males and females being thrust up against each other.
This is what brought about the separate seating arrangements in the first place.
The Ultra-Orthodox are attacked and harassed by the Media and by anti-Religious anti-Jewish activists who in some cases are funded by foreign governments and NGOs to work against them.
The ultimate goal of such organizations is the undermining of Israeli society and the State of Israel.