Women in the News

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Many recent headlines feature women, one of the most prominent

 is Dorit Beinisch, President (Chief Justice) of the Israeli Supreme Court.

As President of the Supreme Court, she is the head of the Israeli judiciary,

responsible for managing the court system

and directly involved in selection of  all new Supreme Court judges.

On the real streets there are hundreds of women judges and lawyers,

who work in their profession and raise a family without making any headlines.

Recently, photos of women used in advertising drew negative attention

resulting in protest signs…with women in them.

While in Mamilla Mall there are photos showing women’s bodies

and famous faces in advertising campaigns,

 this sign for lingerie caught my attention…for what it did not show.

A small protest against the opening of this dance studio got a lot of coverage,

but a protest against domestic violence against women was ignored by the media.

I walked with the protesters until Mamilla Mall,

as it was on my way to a Jerusalem Web Professionals Meetup.

Women and men getting together to network, share ideas and help each other.

There are thousands of women in hi-tech and science doing great work,

many volunteer their expertise, but only a rare few make headlines.

It took until today for religious women to get positive headlines

 for serving in the army, some are proud to wear long, modest skirts.

There are women who after making aliya as lone soldiers, volunteer to help others.

  These young women worked hard to help feed over 300 lone soldiers in Tel Aviv

at Thanksgiving dinner sponsored by the Lone Soldier Center in memory of M. Levin.

Over two dozen women olim volunteered to make side dishes and desserts,

preparing everything from traditional cranberry relish to fresh pumpkin pies.

Thousands of women volunteer in educational support organizations such as

AMIT, Emunah, Hadassah, and WIZO, but they do not make headlines.

On International Volunteer Day a few special cases are honored.

The unseen faces, quiet and hard-working, the unsung heroes

are those who enrich everyone around them…

but they are not news.

Today might be a good time to say, thank you volunteers.

Not a Pretty Picture

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Police across the United States and around the world are entering and closing down

“Occupy” protest camps and tent cities.

 Around Gan Sacher, Sacher Park, there is major landscaping in progress,

but it is still “occupied” by homeless people.

The encampment

set up on a major thoroughfare

takes up a sizeable section of the park.

It is not a pretty picture.

Wood is ready to burn for heat and cooking,

a reminder that meteorological winter begins today.

Structures are covered with plastic to protect them from the rain.

Inside the park, fences have been installed,

a garbage bin is in place,

 as are a Tzedekah box to collect money

and primitive washing facilities.

Many passers-by complain about the appearance of the park.

The irony is that those tents in the sun can be a whole lot warmer

than the old stone buildings in Jerusalem that get no sun in the winter.

The tent dwellers may save a lot of money on daytime heating costs,

but it is not a pretty picture.

To end the week with something positive…

everyone can take part in Hamshushlim, an annual Jerusalem event with

hundreds of museums and restaurants offering reduced prices

and free entrance on Thursday nights in December.

Terror Triumphs

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Mea Shearim, an ultra-religious Jewish neighborhood over a hundred years old,

is a popular tourist stop and shopping center.

When you turn the corner

from Strauss Street,

you enter another world,

where Pashkavillim, not the internet provide the latest news.

On Mea Shearim Street discounted books can cause an instant crowd to gather.

For over a year the Or Chaim Bookstore on Mea Shearim Street

has been the target of repeated and increasing terror attacks.

This English modesty sign now hangs outside as a result of  those  assaults.

Metal doors, security, and police did not protect the owners from the thugs,

who vandalized the store and threatened the owners for over a year.

A group called Sikrikim,  extremists who want to control women’s dress and

 to decide which books are appropriate to sell and to read.

However, in store

after store,

after store,

after store,

after renovated store on Mea Shearim Street,

  no such modesty signs were posted today.

 Feldheim bookstore had the sign in Hebrew only.

Despite unending major building and renovation,

 and unwelcoming signs

 posted at the entrance to the neighborhood, the tourists still keep coming.

A few violent people caused The Or Chaim Bookstore’s shades to be closed,

so from the street no one can see they sell English books.

The damage caused by the Sikrikim was NIS 250.000 (over $65,000) ,

forcing them to give in.

Now they have the signs up.

They will not sell books the Sikrikim disapprove of.

Terror has triumphed in Mea Shearim…