So said 22 year old Or Levy one of the organizers of an event with the disgusting name, “slutwalk”.
This is what insulting people begets. Although I understand where that insult is
coming from, there is absolutely no excuse to insult people for the way they
dress. Even if you do not approve of the lack of modesty in their clothing
choices.
They may think they are being Mekadesh Shem Shamayim by
standing up for Tznius. But in fact that is not true. You have insulted a
person who did not see anything wrong with the modern way in which she dressed.
Insulting them is not the way to get them to ‘see the light’. It just makes them angry and in some cases
vindictive.
So she ends up with is causing a scenario that is much worse than the one she insulted someone over: A Chilul HaShem called the slutwalk in the
holy city of Jerusalem.
I agree that all people should have enough common sense not
to dress in a provocative manner, especially in cities like Jerusalem. What constitutes
provocative dress is a matter of debate. But without inserting Halacha into
what that constitutes - common sense should dictate that there are lines that
should not be crossed.
I don’t know what Ms. Levy meant by “a bit revealing”. Maybe
she did cross the line, I don’t know. My
guess is she probably dressed in a way that is fairly common in the modern
world. But whatever the case, no one has the right to call another human being
a slut because of the way they dress.
That said, I strongly protest what she has called for in response.
Slutwalk? In Jerusalem? What could she possibly be thinking?
This event is an open invitation to dress with extreme immodesty! Ms. Levy will end up bringing dishonor to the
holy city instead of achieving her stated goal. It won’t just attract women wearing dresses that are ‘a bit revealing’. It will in all likelihood bring
all manner of - well - slutiness into the streets if judged by the immodest pictures
seen in the Ynet article on this subject.
I have to agree with Deputy Mayor Yossi Deutch’s description
of it. It is disgraceful! He hopes to somehow legally prevent it. I hope he
can.
The article says that the catalyst for this ‘worldwide
protest’ was a statement made by a Canadian police officer last year: “(He) suggested last year that to remain safe, women should
avoid dressing like sluts.”
I don’t think his message is all that bad. I would not have used
his choice of words. But in certain parts of the world where modesty standards
are very strict, Dressing provocatively can very easily get the kind of
response Ms. Levy got. Or worse – as has been shown in places like Meah Shearim
and Bet Shemesh. There women who are modestly dressed by most standards have
been physically accosted for not being modest enough!
This is not of course to say that anyone who is attacked for
reasons of immodesty brought it on themselves. This is how some interpret the
message of that cop – which I doubt was his intent. If it was - that would be
like blaming a victim of a rape because of the clothes she was wearing. But either way - to create an event like this
to protest that attitude is a provocation far worse than what Ms Levy was
attacked for.
As is always the case in these kinds of things, common sense
goes out the window. If this event proceeds as planned, who knows what kind
of violence it may draw. Ms. Levy and her fellow organizers ought to think
twice before going ahead with it.
