Since the arrest of nofrat frenkel in november 2009 for wearing a tallit and trying to
read the Torah at the Kotel, there has been much discussion of the women of the wall
and the right of women to wear a tallit in the women’s section at the Kotel.1 There has
not been enough discussion, however, of a much greater problem: in recent years, the
rabbi of the Kotel has expanded the synagogue section of the Kotel plaza and the Kotel
guard now patrol the entire Kotel plaza.
They have posted large signs warning people to dress modestly. They tell people how to dress and what to wear, they tell women and girls not to sing, they separate girls from boys and they tell Christians to remove the crosses from their necks. The result is that non-orthodox Jews have begun to avoid the Kotel entirely and many military ceremonies have been moved to other locations. indeed, a recent poll (december 23, 2009) shows that 90% of israelis want less genderseparation at the Kotel.
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