Tel-Chai Nation

Last week, while US vice president Pence was visiting Israel, the degrading rabbi in charge of the Western Wall arena, Shmuel Rabinovitch, asked that there be a gender segregated partition at a press conference awning set up while Pence was speaking to reporters. This was, put lightly, gender discrimination, and in my viewpoint, gender bigotry. The most offended was a Globes reporter:

Yesterday morning, we female journalists were put in separate and much more restricting conditions than our male colleagues, as we covered the visit of US Vice President Mike Pence to the Western Wall. The men, journalists and photographers, were put on a raised stage with steps so that the first row of photographers did not block the vision of those in the second row.

The female journalists and photographers were put on a separate stage, immediately behind the backs of the men who completely obstructed the line of vision of the women journalists and photographers.

When we first arrived, we immediately protested. Together with Noga Tarnopolsky from the Los Angeles Times, AFP's Heidi Levine, Yediot Ahronot's Yael Friedson and several others, we spent an hour asking representatives of the US Embassy who had invited us to cover the event to change the arrangements so that we could sit in the first or second row alongside our male colleagues - but our requests were completely rejected.

It was only just a few minutes before Pence arrived with the full entourage of US journalists and photographers that we had been brought some shaky chairs. When we stood upon them and the white covering above us was removed, our heads poked up through the metal frame that had held the covering, but our view of Pence was still obstructed by the men in front of us.

[...] This situation, in which female journalists are asked to do their work and cover an event in discriminatory conditions and separate from their male colleagues is inappropriate in a Western democratic country in 2018. The Western Wall was cleared of people before the arrival of the US Vice President. No prayers were taking place and so all those who came to cover the event and do their job had no need to be pushed to the back because of being a woman.

I think the US staff should not have complied with what Rabinovitch wanted, and they didn't have to cave simply because they were worried about "offending". If it's wrong to cave for Islamists, then by the same logic, it's wrong to cave for the sake of phony Judaists. Nevertheless, Rabinovitch is still the main culprit to be held accountable, and has only caused serious embarrassment that could've been avoided. One of the Kulanu party's members had a good idea how to respond:

Kulanu MK Rachel Azaria accused Western Wall Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz of creating an unnecessary international incident and harming the diplomatic achievements of Pence’s visit. Azaria said she had a bill that would define the role of the Western Wall rabbi and prevent him from “treating the site like it is his own personal property.”

And that's something I will fully support her pushing through for drafting in the Knesset. It's time for the would-be caretaker of a famous site to be held responsible for how he handles things and being petty.

Rabinovitch has now issued an apology to the Globes staff:

The rabbi of the Western Wall sent a letter of apology to the editor of the Israeli business daily Globes for the discriminatory treatment of one of its reporters during Vice President Mike Pence’s visit to the site last week.

Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovich, writing to Globes editor-in-chief Naama Sikuler, said “I want to express my regret for the anguish suffered by your newspaper’s diplomatic correspondent,” Tal Schneider.

He also said he would “be very happy to set a meeting and visit to the Western Wall soon. The invitation is for you and whoever else you want to bring with you.”

Sikuler received the letter on Monday.

Schneider had threatened to file a lawsuit against Rabinovich over the segregation of female reporters and photographers from their male counterparts during Pence’s visit. On a podium erected for the journalists in the Western Wall plaza, the women were required to stand behind the men.

Honestly, I think she or the paper still should go ahead with a lawsuit. For now, if she goes to see Rabinovitch, she should not dress "modestly", make clear he must shake her hand, and even tell him any physical hostility towards Reform/Conservatives is not acceptable, period. If this isn't a prayer service, then they cannot force or even demand a gender segregated podium space for press conferences. Above all that, I would recommend to US officials not to comply with a request that contradicts their values. Especially given that Rabinovitch himself is not a politician.

Labels: haredi corruption, Israel, Jerusalem, Judaism, Knesset, misogyny, Moonbattery, United States