Transgender Eurovision champion’s participation in the official state Independence Day opening ceremony met with opposition on both the right and left.
Minister Miri Regev, who is overseeing the official state Israeli Independence Day events, has notified the singer Dana International that she has been selected to light a torch at the official opening ceremony of the holiday on Mount Herzl.
Regev’s office stated, “Dana International, an international singer and cultural icon, was a trailblazer and brought Israel to victory in the 1998 Eurovision with the song ‘Diva.’ Beyond her musical achievements, Dana became a symbol of acceptance, equality, and pride, and led a change in perceptions regarding the LGBT community and gender in Israel and around the world.”
Minister Regev stated: “Dana International is a groundbreaking figure, one of the most beloved singers in Israel, and one of the most successful in the world, who contributed a lot to promoting values of tolerance and acceptance in Israeli society. Choosing Dana to light a torch is a recognition of her special contribution and her ability to unite hearts around the values of equality and mutual respect.”
The decision was met with opposition by those in conservative circles due to International (whose real name is Sharon Cohen) being transgender.
In a Hebrew opinion column in Arutz Sheva, Itamar Segal attacked the decision, saying he could not watch the ceremony since partakeing in the ceremony is “something no less than an idol in the Temple – a man, a singer who decided he’s a woman, an Israel ‘trailblazer’ to one of the biggest crazinesses known to mankind since it appeared on earth. Anyone who is familiar with this phenomenon from up-close and knows what it means and its the consequences, even before the halachic prohibition and the Torah’s outlook, knows how crazy and bad it is, and how it is chametz that must be destroyed from this earth so it is not seen or found.”
He added: “What will we do with the shame if a minister in a right-wing government is the one to decide on such a disgrace?” At the same time, many of those on the left voiced criticism of the singer’s decision to agree to attend the event organized by the government, which they despise, and in light of the fact that International herself called on fellow LGBT singer Ivri Lider not to participate in last year’s event to protest the fact that the hostages were not released.
The singer responded to the criticism, writing on social media: “Regarding the hostages -there is no bigger pain than this. Since the war began, I’ve been screaming this at every possible place. During the first year of the war, I could bring myself to get up on stage. I canceled my Purim concert because I felt I couldn’t. We live many long months in this tragedy, and we try to function, live, and scream.
“Last year, I published a post calling on Ivri Lider not to go to the ceremony while there are still hostages. That’s how I felt then. I admit that now, it doesn’t sound good. Should I tell you what excites me the most now? That I’m going to hug Eli Sharabi and Emily Damari, who during last year’s ceremony were in captivity and this year will stand on the stage to light a torch. How we’ve waited for this moment, for them to be here. Together with them, we will make heard the voice that calls for them all to be released – until the last hostage.”
Among the others invited to light a torch at the ceremony is Jewish-American political commentator Ben Shapiro, who is known to often criticize the transgender community. In this regard, Dana International quipped: “I want to see from up close who this Shapiro guy is.”
