Two protesters who attended an antigovernment rally in Tel Aviv on Saturday have claimed they were discriminated against for their political views.
Demonstrators gathered at Habima Square Saturday evening to protest controversial plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to overhaul Israel’s judicial system, as well as coalition agreements that call for legislation that would allow service providers to refuse service on the grounds of their religious beliefs — an initiative seen by critics as legalizing discrimination against members of the LGBTQ community, Arabs and women.
After taking part in the demonstration, Tami Guy sat down with a group of friends in the outdoor seating area at Café Landwer’s Habima branch.
Guy wrote in a Facebook post that when she entered the café to use the restroom, the on-shift manager blocked her path, telling her that service would not be provided, “because here it’s Bibi only,” an election campaign slogan used by Netanyahu in the past, using his nickname.
Guy said she and her friends got up and left the café.
According to Guy, Labor MK Gilad Kariv, who had also attended the protest, was at the café and decided to leave after he was told of the incident.
“We will not support bad people that think discrimination is okay,” Guy wrote in her widely shared post.
Israelis attend a protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new government, at Habima Square in Tel Aviv, on January 7, 2023. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)
Responding to the allegations, Café Landwer CEO Ofer Koren told Channel 12 that if the incident was true as recounted in the Facebook post, “it is at odds with the chain’s policies.”
Koren said he apologized to anyone hurt by the incident, but claimed that “20,000 protesters wanted to use the cafe’s restrooms.”
He said the café was staffed by a young team “who felt a little attacked” by the mass of people, but “politics is not our field of play.”
In a separate incident, a protester wearing a shirt from a grassroots organization said she was stopped by guards at a Tel Aviv train station who said she was wearing “provocative” clothing.
The incident, shared online by the protester, Tali Ostrowsky, drew online condemnation and accusations of political discrimination.
Anti-government protester Tali Ostrowsky who was detained by guards at a train station due to her sweatshirt, interviewed on January 10, 2023. (Screen grab/Channel 12)
Ostrowsky was wearing a pink shirt with a logo of the Kumi Israel (“Rise Up, Israel”) group, which played a central role in organizing the 2020-2021 Balfour protests against Netanyahu.
As she tried to enter Hashalom railway station and board the last train home on Saturday, she was stopped by security guards.
“Are you coming from the protest?” the guard asked Ostrowsky, according to her post, followed by, “Do you have a different shirt?”
When she pressed the guard for an explanation, Ostrowsky was told her shirt “may cause provocation” and that she must wait before boarding her train.
“Pink represents hope, ‘Rise Up’ is an invitation to wake up and protect our democracy,” Ostrowsky told the guard, to no avail.
In a video of the incident published by Ostrowsky, she is heard asking the guard, “If it was a shirt that read: ‘Bibi is the king, would it still be a shirt that may cause provocation?” to which the guard answered, “Yes, unequivocally,” while trying to reach her supervisor on the phone.
“Where does it say what shirt I can or can’t wear?” a frustrated Ostrowsky asked. A second guard responded, “There’s a policy that states that public order needs to be maintained.”
Ostrowsky was eventually let in, still wearing the shirt, after a station manager intervened.
“Today it’s me, a 59-year-old who is able to speak up and pay for a cab if I’m not allowed in. Tomorrow it could be a person who is the wrong color or nationality according to the guards,” she wrote in her online post.
Anti-Netanyahu protesters seen outside the Prime Minister’s official residence in Jerusalem on April 10, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Responding to the incident, Israel Railways denied any form of discrimination and said that according to its policies, passengers are prohibited from protesting on the train.
“Israel Railways is responsible for transporting millions of passengers across the country every year and works to maintain their safety without taking sides in any political debate. For that purpose, security guards are positioned in stations to maintain order. Passengers are not allowed to demonstrate or enter stations with items used in protests (including signs, flags, etc.) and so the passenger was asked to wait several moments so that the issue could be checked by the station manager, who then let her in,” the company said in a statement.
“The incident does not comply with our policies or with the guidelines given to the security guards,” Israel Railways acknowledged.
In an interview with Chanel 12 on Tuesday, Ostrowsky noted that demonstrators need to use public transportation to reach protests.
“Even if the guard in question made an error in judgment, there were others there and they all stood by,” she said.
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January 11, 2023 at 04:07PM
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Anti-government protesters claim discrimination at café, train station - The Times of Israel
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