More than ever before, this year’s Jesalem gay pri para offered a stage for opponents of the current far-right/ultra-Orthodox aln and the judicial overhl advanced by the ernment.
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GAY PRI PARA JESALEM
Police bolstered on pal's streets for annual event; 2 teens taed for puttg up posters agast event; anti-gay Lehava group monstrat agast participants * gay parade jerusalem *
JERUSALEM -- Thoands of people on Thursday marched Jesalem's Pri para — an annual event that took place for the first time unr Israel’s new far-right ernment, which is stacked wh openly homophobic march the nservative cy is always tense and tightly secured by police, and has been wracked by vlence the past.
Jesalem's march is typilly more subdued than the one gay-iendly Tel Aviv, where tens of thoands of revelers pour to the streets for a massive, multilored party. ”Prime Mister Benjam Netanyahu's ernment is ma up of ultranatnalist and ultra-relig parti who openly oppose homosexualy, although the Israeli lear has promised to protect LGBTQ+ rights and a member of his party who is gay is the Knset speaker. The untry's Fance Mister Bezalel Smotrich has the past clared he was a “proud homophobe.
"There are people who are very much homophobic and very much transphobic who are the ernment today and hold posns of power and budget and are workg agast actually right now, ” she rried a flag that read: “There is no pri whout mocracy.
Much of Israel’s L.G.B.T.Q. muny feels threatened by the right-wg ernment and s judicial overhl plan — even wh a gay speaker of Parliament. * gay parade jerusalem *
At the para 2015, an ultra-Orthodox Israeli man stabbed 16-year-old Shira Banki to ath and wound several is generally tolerant toward the LGBTQ+ muny, a rary the nservative Middle East, where homosexualy is wily nsired taboo and is outlawed some plac.
Members of the LGBTQ+ muny serve openly Israel’s ary and parliament, and many popular artists and entertaers are openly gay. Jewish ultra-Orthodox parti, which wield signifint fluence over matters of relign and state, oppose homosexualy as a vlatn of relig law, as do other relig groups nservative make-up of Netanyahu's ernment sparked new fears the LGBTQ+ muny, which had seen gas unr the prev, short-lived admistratn led by Netanyahu's rivals. Police bolstered on pal’s streets for annual event; 2 teens taed for puttg up posters agast event; anti-gay Lehava group monstrat agast participants.
Thoands of people take part the annual Gay Pri Para Jesalem, June 3, 2021. The annual event is a highlight for the cy’s vibrant LGBT muny, which is often overshadowed by Tel Aviv’s gay-iendly persona and bet by relig and polil tensns ever-prent the pal. As thoands filled the pal’s streets, a small monstratn prottg the para was held by members of the far-right and anti-gay Lehava anizatn.
* gay parade jerusalem *
Right wg activists monstrate agast the annual Gay Pri para Jesalem, on June 3, 2021. People at the Gay Pri Para Jesalem on June 3, 2021, look at a photo of Shira Banki, murred by an ultra-Orthodox extremist at the march 2015. "Itamar Ben-Gvir prottg the Jesalem gay pri para, 2009.
The sign to his right lls marchers 'sick perverts'Cred: Ts ScheflanAs past years, there have been real threats agast , most recently reported by the watchdog group Fake Reporter, which intified cement and vlent threats agast the marchers on social media, wh posts exprsg the wish that participants “die om gunfire” or get shot or group makg the threats is affiliated wh Lehava, which aniz a yearly unterprott agast the para which activists stand as close to the para as they are permted by police, shout slurs at the marchers and acce them of rptg children and filg opposn peaked 2005, when Smotrich, then a young right-wg activist, and Lehava-affiliated Ben-Gvir joed forc wh others to anize a "beast para" ahead of the event, placg farm animals along the route, orr to illtrate the parallel between homosexualy and btialy. Three weeks after his release a later 2015, Schlissel ntued his missn, attackg marchers aga and killg 16-year-old high school stunt Shira Banki as well as jurg six what beme a sndal about the police's failure to bar him om the stabbg the Gay Pri para Thursday, July 30, 2015, and Shira AP and urtySce then, the dark cloud of Banki’s murr has hung over the event. ”Netanyahu prevly fend the para when Ben-Gvir’s polil partner, homophobic lear of the Noam party, Avi Maoz, took aim at the event shortly after the Jesalem Pri Para Ohad ZwigenbergIn a post-electn victory terview wh an Orthodox newspaper, Maoz promised to “make sure to ncel” the “shameful” event, sayg “’s a disgrace that there is a para” and that such “a promiscuo abomatn” harms “holy Jesalem.
Muny feels threatened by the right-wg ernment and s judicial overhl plan — even wh a gay speaker of Parliament. Another far-right mister wh a history of homophobia, Itamar Ben-Gvir, who now overse the police, was tasked wh securg Jesalem para is normally a relatively staid annual tradn. Activists have reported a sharp crease anti-gay abe and vlence Israel recent months, and had been expectg a large turnout for this year’s para.