Israel’s gay rights record touted in NY

By BENJAMIN WEINTHAL, JERUSALEM POST CORRESPONDENT 05/21/2012 02:36 Birthright Israel alumni placed a mural in Manhattan’s West Village which contrasts gay rights in Israel with discrimination elsewhere.

BERLIN – The alumni association of Birthright Israel placed a mural in Manhattan’s West Village neighborhood last week, which juxtaposed the rights of gays in Israel with criminal penalties for gays in such countries as Syria and Iran.

The mural, which appears on a wall in a parking lot in Greenwich Village, has unleashed a mixed set of views on contrasting Israel’s record on gay rights with those of Muslim-majority countries that are violently hostile toward same-sex relations.

Related: TA Gay Pride set to paint town all kinds of colorsThe Numbers Crunch: Gay marriage in the spotlightThe mural was launched on Friday and shows the outlines of two men holding hands. It poses the question above the men: “Who would YOU want at your wedding?” The couple hold two balance scales. The pro-Israel scale contains a text saying “Same sex couples can legally adopt children, gay people serve openly in the military and government” and more than 10,000 attended the 2011 Tel Aviv Gay Pride Parade.

The scale for “Israel’s neighbors,” notes that Iran punishes homosexuality with death and same-sex relations are illegal in Syria. The text continues that “There is no pride parade in Egypt, Jordan or Gaza.”

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