WUNRN
Haaretz.com
16/02/2009
By
Vered Lee
At 10:30 A.M. on Friday, as the regular clientele of the cafes on Ben Yehuda
Street were sipping their first cup of coffee of the day, Dorit Abramovitz, who
manages campaigns for women's organizations, and some 30 feminist women and a
handful of men jolted Tel Avivians awake with a thunderous, radical chant:
"Indifferent residents of Tel Aviv: Trade in women must be prohibited."
"All the women's organizations decided to launch protests against the free
distribution of pornographic magazines like 'Banana' and 'Seximo' in Tel Aviv,
where they are handed out gratis at certain convenience stores and
newsstands," says Abramovitz. "The decision to protest these
magazines was taken within the framework of about an ongoing campaign by the
Women's International Zionist Organization, which was recently launched against
pornographic advertisements that are harmful to women. The campaign will culminate
on International Women's Day on March 8, with an event in Tel Aviv, where the
advertisement that has been most harmful to women in 2008 will be announced and
will be awarded a mark of shame by the organization."
The activists enter a nearby convenience store, gathering the magazines into a
black garbage bag. The proprietor is stunned. "Take them, take them,"
he says. The owner of the next kiosk says he refuses to stock the
"Banana" magazines. "You'll get a feminine seal of
kashrut," the activists joke with him.
The activists spot pornographic DVDs, stocked at the entrance to Kiosk Tami.
"You are not allowed to stock this," says attorney Tami Katsbian.
"Get out of here," the owner shrieks. Tempers get heated. The
convenience store proprietor starts cursing and threatening the women. After
several minutes the police decide to intervene -- not before informing the
women that they are disrupting public order. The group moves on to the next
kiosk, near Allenby Street, continuously dumping magazines into the garbage
bag.
"The public's indifference is saddening," says Ronit Ehrenfroind-
Cohen, director of the department for the status of women at WIZO. "I am
learning that people are not aware, that they are cynical and have no desire to
take a stand and do something. They walk by and leaf through 'Banana,' and for
a moment they might actually think that this isn't okay. That's why there is no
alternative but to take to the streets, initiate campaigns and promote
awareness of the issue."
On King George Street, the group comes to a halt. All of them have strained
their vocal chords, but they know the action has been a success. "It is
necessary to continue this activity and move on to other cities," they
conclude.
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