Orthodox Israeli Singer Covers Eyes With Tape To Avoid Seeing Women Dance
Israeli singer Yonatan Razel covered his face with tape so that he wouldn’t see women dancing during a concert. Image by Twitter
(JTA) — A popular Haredi Orthodox singer covered his eyes with tape during a Jerusalem concert so he would not have to see women dancing.
Watching women dance is forbidden in Orthodox Jewish law, but Yonatan Razel’s move on Sunday is being called unprecedented. He covered his eyes for a few minutes at the International Conference Center show when some women began to dance at the front of the crowd, then removed the tape for the rest of the concert.
Razel, 44, is one of Israel’s most successful Haredi performers and recently released his third album. The concert was at a festival of Orthodox music for women.
Razel’s move prompted some criticism online and from women’s groups.
“How far will this ostensibly religious extremism go?” Galia Wolloch, head of the women’s rights group Na’amat, wrote on Facebook. “And who are the religious authorities who encourage this bizarre behavior?”
Razel’s representative said the singer’s actions have been overly scrutinized.
“Razel wants to say that he has appeared regularly for years before women and respects them, and his actions yesterday should not be given any other significance,” he said.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
