Published: 17 August 2023
Last updated: 5 March 2024
Young women were told to move to the back of the bus because, ‘It’s a Jewish state’. The case is only the tip of growing discrimination against women.
A group of Australian Jewish women get on a public bus and sit in the closest seats. How can that be a story worth telling in 2023? It is, because the women were protesting an incident in Israel last Sunday when a group of Israeli girls were unable to exercise the same basic right.
International protests this week highlighted the growing experience of discrimination against women in public spaces in Israel, resulting from the influence of the ultra-Orthodox. The problem is aggravated by the Netanyahu government’s moves to reduce the power of the High Court, which has often been the last line of defence for women facing discrimination.
Protests were held in cities including Melbourne, Sydney, London, Munich, Toronto, Belize City, and several US locations. A major women's march will take place in the Haredi city of Bnei Brak next Thursday.
Sunday’s incident occurred when a bus driver from a public transport company demanded that a group of teenage girls sit in the back and cover themselves up, because the bus line also carries ultra-Orthodox passengers. Boys from the same group were seated at the front and prevented from moving to sit with the girls.
"We asked him why, and he started telling us that we live in a bubble, that we're wearing nothing, and that's how they're looking at our bodies," said Shaked Rapaport, one of the girls in the group.
Another girl recorded a conversation with the driver, telling him she felt humiliated by his request. His response: "Talk about it on the news … you're from a kibbutz, so you've already answered the question. You're cut off from the world. You live in a Jewish state, and you need to respect the people who live here. The fact that you grew up in a kibbutz, and they taught you that – I'm sorry for you. The education you grew up on is the worst education you can get."
