Religious Tolerance Rally Scheduled For Sabbath In Meah Shearim

“Our goal is to bring the spirit of acceptance and sensitivity to places where it seldom gets the chance to shine.”

Jerusalem, August 2 – On the heels of nationwide protests against hate and violence, the organizers of those rallies have embarked on a new endeavor to foster greater tolerance, and have scheduled a rally this coming Saturday afternoon in Jerusalem’s religious Meah Shearim enclave.

A coalition of organizations from across a narrow slice of the left side of the political spectrum came together in the wake of a fatal stabbing attack in last week’s Gay Pride parade in the city and a Molotov cocktail attack in the Palestinian village of Duma that killed a toddler and critically injured other members of his family. To protest the extremism behind both attacks, a series of protests dotted the country Friday and Saturday, but some leaders felt the live-and-let-live sentiment was not expressed strongly enough, and have therefore arranged for a large rally, with amplification equipment, large screens, and other electronic technology to help project the message of openness and tolerance, both to the attendees and the residents of the surrounding neighborhoods in the midst of their Sabbath observance.

Provo Katz-Yah, who helped finalize the list of speakers at Saturday night’s Tel Aviv rally, said that the Meah Shearim population is among the most economically challenged in Israel, and would therefore find it difficult to attend the event were it held elsewhere, so he and his colleagues decided to hold it where that community could enjoy easy access. “We understand that not everyone lives in Tel Aviv, but that the values of openness and tolerance can be expressed anywhere, at any time. Our goal is to bring the spirit of acceptance and sensitivity to places where it seldom gets the chance to shine.”

Katz-Yah added that the specific selection of Meah Shearim, densely populated by the ultra-orthodox, was partially a response to complaints that some Haredim were denied admission to this past Saturday night’s rally, under the mistaken assumption that the ultra-orthodox would attend to disrupt, rather than show solidarity. While the stabber at last week’s parade, a convicted criminal named Yishai Shlissel, identifies and dressed as Haredi, religious leaders across the board have condemned his actions and denied that he represents their way of life. The unfortunate stereotyping that led to the barring of those Haredim from the rally became the springboard for holding this coming weekend’s event, this time in the epicenter of Jerusalem Haredi life where none could be refused admission.

“We’re going to hold this event Saturday afternoon, even in the heat of the day if it comes to that,” explained Katz-Yah. “Everyone deserves to be shown, in the most unmistakable fashion, where we stand on religious sensitivity.”