The Jerusalem Municipality’s legal advisor, Attorney Eli Malka, issued a new directive, according to which the separation between boys and girls should be stopped in the municipal libraries located throughout chareidi neighborhoods.
Malka was quick to respond to an effort launched by the Reform Movement and women’s rights organization. They turned to Deputy State Attorney General Zilber, asking her to bring an end to the separate library hours, which they feel have no place in a democratic society.
In a letter sent by the Reform Movement to Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, the city’s director-general and the city’s legal advisor wrote: “The said separation imposes rigid gender segregation on all library users. Setting separate hours for boys and girls / men and women reduces the possibility of all residents using the library on a day and time.
“In addition, the establishment of separate hours does not allow family members, mothers and children, brothers and sisters to visit the library together”.
In their letter, they demanded from the municipality: “The separate hours for men and women, boys and girls, will be canceled at the Har Nof library and in the other Torah libraries in the city, and free access will be given to all visitors at the opening hours, without gender segregation. “Notice will be sent to all residents that during the opening hours, the library is open to all applicants.”
Chareidi elected officials including Aryeh Deri and Yaakov Litzman are fighting the initiative, as reported by YWN-ISRAEL.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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8 Responses
He who pays the fiddler, calls the tune. If an institution or individual is on the zionist payroll, they should not be surprised when the boss makes decisions that they aren’t happy with, and having bought their souls, expects the recipients of government largess to carry out these decisions. That’s how politics works everywhere – including Eretz Yisrael.
Welcome to Israel
They can do as they wish,
One thing though, don’t call it Eretz ”YISRAEL”
Judaism is not a democracy . There’s hierarchy and obligations . Welcome to Judaism.
These are public library facilities, not the kosel, a mikvah or even some religious site….the government has no business dictating gender separation in public facilities. People come there to take out books and use the computers. Should the government require gender separation at the grocery store or in doctors’ offices.
so the Reform should demand that Arabs not have separate school s for boys and girls?No wait, that would be culturally insensitive!
It is truly amazing how the Reform Hellenists have become so anti-Torah, truly evil.
Gadolhatorah, the government isn’t dictating gender separate hours, it’s the neighborhood patrons who want some separate hours so their kids can use the libraries by themselves.People want to know that their daughters can be safe from Arab males or other predators and their sons can do their school work without exposure to immodesty.
Mothers should accompany their sons to ensure they are not molested by male pedofles,as has probably already happened under the canceled arrangement.
This is a classic example of how a perceived chumra causes much worse violations of halacha.