Let’s not permit v iolence and hatred to stop the largest delegation of LGBT Jews from North America from going to Israel next summer. Now it is even more important that we stand side-by-side and hand-in-hand with the LGBT population in Jerusalem and all of Israel. We cannot be complacent and we cannot be afraid. They manifest the leadership quality we learned about in Wexner: perseverance. The Jerusalem Open House of Pride and Tolerance, leading the response to this recent tragedy, is doing important work to strengthen the LGBT community in Jerusalem. Members of the Jerusalem LGBT community shouldn’t feel like they have to move to the more inclusive and LGBT-friendly city of Tel Aviv. (For example, see this recent article by LGBT activist Jay Michaelson.) These words of hate motivate attackers who seek justification for their brutal acts. While it seems as if progress has been made, many ultra-Orthodox voices still speak of the LGBT population in derogatory and inflammatory language. How could this be happening? And by the same attacker from ten years ago. I was shocked when I learned of the stabbing attack on six marchers, ultimately leading to the death of 16-year old Shira Banki earlier this week. The occasional stink bomb was hurled at us, but it had been eight long years since marchers were attacked by an ultra-Orthodox man with a knife.
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I felt safe with the security surrounding us despite knowing that many Jerusalemites saw us as evil sinners. Religious, secular and transgender people marching under a sea of rainbow flags, hand-in-hand, through the ancient city of faith. I was moved to see the diversity of that event. During my trip to Israel with the Wexner Heritage Program in 2013, I extended my travels so I could attend the LGBT March in Jerusalem.