We here in the US have had our bout with racism, sexism and segregation and we have moved past it (now here we could stop and argue if that statement is true…personally I think NOT….but that is not what this post is about…..)……..and that democracy will eliminate the abuses like segregation…..
We have all seen how women, in particular, are treated….they must segregate themselves from the men, they are treated like chattel, and have very few rights if any in the Muslim world……and we here in the US condemn this treatment of women and we almost universally state that if democracy is to flourish then this type of situation must be resolved…..
First of all…CRAP!
When it comes to the Middle East conservatives point to Israel as this shining beacon of democracy that all countries should aspire to accomplish…….here we could argue that it is NOT as democratic as its cheerleaders would have you believe…..all that democracy seems to be only for the Jews…….the Israeli Arabs would most likely give a good case for this statement being erroneous…..and that would be a discussion for another day……….
In the democratic state of Israel there seems to be a bit of a problem with the segregation of women……
Israel boasts a female opposition leader, high-profile women soldiers, and a female former prime minister. But walk the streets of Jerusalem these days and, in some areas, you’ll see gender-segregated sidewalks, buses, health clinics, and supermarkets—and few billboards or ads depicting women. The capital city has become increasingly segregated as ultra-Orthodox rabbis fight back against what they see as secularization, the AP reports. In one of several examples, the AP notes that Jerusalem debuted its long-awaited light rail with a big ad campaign this summer—one devoid of women’s faces. The growing segregation is most obvious in Jerusalem, where the ultra-Orthodox population is growing quickly (it’s expected to jump from its current 9% to 15% by 2025) and has a disproportionate amount of political power, but it’s moving into other areas as well. Even the military is considering reassigning female soldiers, as some religious men don’t want to serve alongside them. But Israel’s Supreme Court has made moves against the trend, and last month ordered that barriers intended to segregate a sidewalk during a popular religious ceremony be removed.
Of course I am sure that the cheerleaders will find some way to justify this practice…..you know….kinda like they justified it in the South in the 1950’s…..
FLASH! There is NO justification of the practice of segregation in a democracy……either eliminate the practice or STOP calling yourself a democracy!
Now, now. We mustn’t look at the negative aspects of a culture. It would ruin that image they are trying to project.
It kind of reminds you of the Tea Party mentality in this country where the past is supposed to reflect more of who we are supposed to be while disregarding the inevitable changes that must and will come.
Larry, personally, I am tired of Israel being held up as some kind of miracle of democracy, especially in the Middle East….they ware no closer to it than anyone else…
I think democracy will only eliminate abuses like segregation if the people are willing. If majority ruled sixty years ago in the deep South, segregation would not have ended when it did.
I’ve known about the problem with the ultra-Orthodox Jews for a long, long time, actually. I had a really exceptional sociology teacher in H.S. that introduced us to all sorts of different things and I remember watching a video about those people when I was 16. If you’re caught driving in one of their neighborhoods on the Sabbath, they’ll literally destroy your car. It’s insane. They’re not all there, I don’t think. They’ve allowed religion to destroy their common sense and decency.
Terrance, I know I was in Israel back in the 80’s and 90’s and saw this also….they also treat Israeli Arabs as sub human also…like I said to Larry…..this is NOT the democracy that they want us to believe….