On a cold night in the centre of Jerusalem this week, they sang, swayed and danced, united in outrage at the exclusion of women and growing gender segregation in the public arena."We won't stop singing or showing women's faces or dancing until this ugly phenomenon which is foreign to Judaism or to any democratic society has vanished," said Micky Gidzin, of Be Free Israel, the organisers of the musical protest.
The ultra-orthodox are a growing sector of Jerusalem's population, currently more than 20% but rising fast due to their high birth rate. They demand modest dress, the separation of men and women in public and a prohibition on women singing or dancing in mixed groups because it may arouse impure thoughts.
Read the whole story on The Guardian, published December 9, 2011.
On a cold night in the centre of Jerusalem this week, they sang, swayed and danced, united in outrage at the exclusion of women and growing gender segregation in the public arena."We won't stop singing or showing women's faces or dancing until this ugly phenomenon which is foreign to Judaism or to any democratic society has vanished," said Micky Gidzin, of Be Free Israel, the organisers of the musical protest.
The ultra-orthodox are a growing sector of Jerusalem's population, currently more than 20% but rising fast due to their high birth rate. They demand modest dress, the separation of men and women in public and a prohibition on women singing or dancing in mixed groups because it may arouse impure thoughts.
Read the whole story on The Guardian, published December 9, 2011.