Israeli Women Fight Relegation To Back Of Bus

[Purveyor]

(JTA) -- Three years ago, a 57-year-old grandmother got on a bus in Israel departing Rechovot for Givat Shmuel and sat in a vacant seat in the front.

Shortly after taking her seat, the woman was approached by a fervently Orthodox man who demanded she move to the back of the bus with the rest of the women.

Unbeknownst to the woman, who asked JTA to be identified only as H., she had boarded one of the so-called mehadrin (super kosher) bus lines, on which the predominantly ultra-Orthodox, or haredi, ridership imposes sex-segregated seating. The man told H. that segregated seating had been sanctioned by the rabbis and by Egged, the state-owned bus company that operates the line.

H., who is herself religious, refused, prompting a barrage of verbal abuse from the man.

"With the exception of being physically harmed, I was hurt in every manner," H. told JTA. "He called me every name imaginable. I was shocked, and I didn't know how to respond to him."

The man harassed her for the entire ride. Nobody, including the driver, came to her aid.

MORE...

JTA: http://jta.org/news/article/2009/12/28/1009928/israeli-women-fight-relegation-to-back-of-bus

[BrklynLiberal]

1. YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! More power to her and those that support her.

This is different from the ultra-orthodox Muslim treatment of women how???

Are these busses taxpayer supported?

These are the very same activities that are condemned when it happens in an Arab country.



:applause: :applause: :applause: :applause: :applause: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[damntexdem]

4. For that matter, what some fundie Xians would like to do.

Nothing like fundie religion when it comes to supporting discriminatory actions.

[no_hypocrisy]

2. You don't change antiquated laws without some chutzpah!

Mazeltov to her.

[Warpy]

3. Good for her and to hell with him

Men who abuse women in any way should be universally condemned.

Unfortunately, religion enshrines them.

[Barack_America]

5. Indeed. nt

[Violet_Crumble]

6. Good on her!

What I think is sad is I recall one DUer who pops up accusing DUers in general of not supporting women's rights if they don't post 24/7 condemnation of things like honour killings and basically anything by Arabs and/or Muslims informing me that at least the women being abused on the bus wasn't killed, as if that justified the total silence of that proclaimed champion of women's rights when it came to intolerance and discrimination towards women by Israeli religious whackjobs. Supporting women's rights means supporting them for all women, not picking out perpetrators you don't like and glossing over it for others...

[BrklynLiberal]

7. Well said!!!

:applause: :applause: :applause: :applause: :applause: :applause: :applause: :applause: