LGBT Rights In Israel by Louise Silverman

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Israel are widely considered to be the most progressive in the Middle East and Asia. Israel, Jordan, Turkey, Iraq, and Cyprus are the only countries in the Middle East where same-sex relationships, practiced in private by two consenting adults, are not considered illegal. In Israel the age of consent is sixteen years old. Homosexuals are not persecuted by law and are actually protected by anti-discrimination laws in Israel (ACRI, 2009). Israel remains the only country in the Middle East to provide this type of legal protection (ACRI, 2009). In many Middle Eastern countries, homosexuality is illegal and is subject to corporal punishment, a form of physical punishment applied to the body of an “offender” including the death penalty, whipping, and imprisonment (Merriam-Webster). Official same-sex marriage, which is controlled by Israel’s religious authorities, has not yet been sanctioned. However, same-sex marriages legalized elsewhere are recognized by the government (ACRI, 2009). Due to this legal constraint, same-sex couples, all mixed religion heterosexual couples, and any couples wanting a nonreligious marriage are forced to marry outside the country. Even with this restriction, Israel has one of the highest percentages of support for civil marriage for same-sex couples in the world, about 61%, with one in three Israelis supporting same-sex marriage. (Reid, 2009).

In 1992 legislation was introduced to prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, with some exemptions for religious organizations (ACRI, 2009). The Israeli Parliament also revised military rulings in 1993 allowing gay, lesbian, and bisexual Israelis to openly serve in the military. In November 2005, a landmark court decision in Israel ruled that a lesbian spouse could officially adopt her partner’s child, even despite protest by the Orthodox Jewish parliamentary parties (ACRI, 2009). In August 2009, an armed attacker shot and killed two people and injured fifteen in an attack on a LGBT center in Tel Aviv, Israel. Many government officials, such as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, expressed deep regret about the incident. In 2012, an Israeli lesbian couple living in London won a case in an Israeli court preventing non-religious organizations from discriminating on the grounds of sexuality. It was also ruled that sexual assault was not only sexual exploitation, but included discrimination and humiliation on the grounds of sexuality as well (Sheinman, 2012).

Tel Aviv is considered one of the most gay-friendly cities in the world and is famous for its annual gay pride parade (The Independent, 2012). NPR says that the Israeli government is pushing Tel Aviv as a ‘safe haven’ for the gay community (Garcia-Navarro, 2012). However, it’s clear that within Israel acceptance of the gay community is not universal. Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, is far more conservative than Tel Aviv and there is less tolerance for the gay community (Garcia-Navarro, 2012). It appears that many of the problems associated with accepting LGBT rights in Israel are largely due to religion and the ever-present conflict with Palestine. An example of a relatively recent and shocking event in 2008 was with Shlomo Benizri, a Knesset member from the religious Shas party and a member of former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s ruling coalition, blamed an earthquake that had recently struck the Middle East on the activities of homosexuals (Meranda, 2008). He recommended that instead of simply improving buildings to withstand earthquakes, the government should pass legislation to outlaw "perversions like adoptions by lesbian couples”. Benizri stated that, "A cost-effective way of averting earthquake damage would be to stop passing legislation on how to encourage homosexual activity in the State of Israel, which anyways causes earthquakes” (Meranda, 2008).

Many people argue that the government should not be able to claim any of the success of LGBT rights in Israel and that the progress should be attributed to the LGBT organizations etc. They claim that this progress has come in spite of government policies. What do you think about the government’s progress on this issue? What’s your reaction to Shlomo Benizri’s statement on earthquakes in the Middle East?

Garcia-Navarro, L. (2012, June 4). Israel Presents Itself As Haven For Gay Community. In NPR. Retrieved February 24, 2013, from http://www.npr.org/2012/06/04/154279534/israel-presents-itself-as-haven-for-gay-community

Reid, A. (2009, August 8). Three-in-Five Israelis Back Same-Sex Marriage. In The Poll Archive. Retrieved February 24, 2013, from http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/36810/three_in_five_israelis_back_same_sex_marriage/

Protecting and Promoting LGBT Rights in Israel (2009, February 15). In The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI). Retrieved February 24, 2013, from http://www.acri.org.il/en/2009/02/15/protecting-and-promoting-lgbt-rights-in-israel/

Tel Aviv Opens Its Arms To Gay Rights (2012, June 9). In The Independent. Retrieved February 24, 2013, from http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/love-sex/taboo-tolerance/the-five-most-improved-places-for-gay-tolerance-932635.html

Sheinman, A. (2012, September 20). Israeli lesbians win landmark discrimination case. In The Jewish Chronicle. Retrieved February 24, 2013, from http://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/82788/israeli-lesbians-win-landmark-discrimination-case

Meranda, A. (2008, February 20). Homosexual activity cause of earthquake, Shas MK says. In Israel News: Ynetnews. Retrieved February 24, 2013, from http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3509263,00.html