Following considerable controversy leading up to the Jerusalem Pride and Tolerance Parade, the parade went off on Thursday without the violence and outrage of previous years. Religious people have been indignant over the holding of a pride march in Jerusalem, on the grounds that homosexuality is offensive to Jews, Muslims and Christians and a pride march has no place in the holy city.
Executive Director Yonatan Gher of Jerusalem Open House, the group that organized the event, had been meeting with haredi leaders to try to negotiate a peaceful day. The haredi (often referred to as “ultra-Orthodox”) decided to bow out of the controversy this year. They said a local event wasn’t as objectionable as the World Pride event in 2006, and anyway, they didn’t want to give the march any publicity or expose their young people to homosexuals even for the purpose of protesting. The banner was taken up by followers of the late terrorist Rabbi Meir Kahane, along with the municipality of Jerusalem, who urged the High Court to ban the parade. The High Court rejected the request. Ha’aretz reported:
During the hearing, Justice Ayala Procaccia said that “a proper balance must be maintained between the desires of the gay/lesbian community to march, and the feelings of the city’s residents – it is important that such parades become a matter of routine instead of causing a commotion every year.”
There were 2,000 police officers providing protection this year, down from 10,000 last year, and while there were a few protesters, there doesn’t seem to have been any violence. Only one person was arrested. Maybe the “holy city,” which seems to simmer constantly with religious hatred, can fit one more group into its cauldron of resentment after all.
A side note: The Group Against Fags Conference ― I mean, the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) ― a conference of anti-gay Anglicans, just happened to schedule its own event in Jerusalem at the same time as the Pride and Tolerance Parade. “It’s neither natural, nor acceptable from the Christian point of view,” sniffed the Rev. Melvin Tinker. Anti-Gay Anglicans pride themselves on their “global” perspective, having in many cases been forced to turn to Africa to find bishops sufficiently homophobic for their tastes.
Read more:
Jerusalem Open House (English version)
Pride in the capital (Jerusalem Post)
High Court rejects petition asking to ban Jerusalem Gay Pride parade (Ha’aretz)
Gay parade sashays through capital (Jerusalem Post)
Anglican rebels clash with gay march (BBC News)
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