Women in Bras and Men with Beards Face-Off
Some of the more prominent case of women’s rights activism comes in the form of women and girls turning the tables on those who would objectify them through utilization of this in a variety of protest tactics. One of which is to go naked or in bras, and so on, in protest of the differential or double standard faced by women and girls compared to men and girls.
Recently, this came to the fore in Jerusalem when police officers rode in, on horses, and attempted to disperse a street protest being held by ultra-Orthodox Haredi Jews, which was on March 18.
As reported, “…a few women stripped the upper part of their bodies, and wore only bras- making protesters go away as they are forbidden as per dictates of their faith to look at the partially undressed women. This was a welcome relief for the police in Jerusalem as hundreds of protestors have earlier clashed with law enforcement on the issue of holding Eurovision Song Contest final during the day of Shabbat.”
Tel Aviv, Israel, was the place of hosting for the 2019 Eurovision event. Haneviim Street was blocked during the protest of the ultra-Orthodox Haredi. Many protestors attacked the police. “Shabbes” was shouted in Yiddish. The religious protestors asserted that the Eurovision 2019 event was desecrating.
“In retaliation a small women group counter-protested by taking off their respective shirts, revealing bras. The ultra-Orthodox Jews were forced to exit the venue. The protests were ignited after work permits for Eurovision was issued in the morning,” the article stated, “The permits incensed an ultra-Orthodox political party so much that they temporarily suspended all coalition negotiations and began their Jerusalem protest march.”
Those Jewish peoples who follow in the teachings and the practices of the ultra-Orthodox of Judaism have no work on Shabbat, which is a day of rest every week. It starts sundown in Fridays and then runs until the night falls on Saturday.
“One of the chief rabbis of Israel was not happy with the Eurovision schedule. He asked those who follow Shabbat to extend the observance of the custom in the holy day by about 20 minutes to mark their protest against the ‘great desecration,’” reportage said.
