Israeli folk singer Yuval Dayan recently became religious and now dresses modestly at her performances. However she is still willing to sing in front of men and was invited together with fellow singer Ran Danker to sing in front of President Biden when he visited the Israeli president’s residence Thursday.
After Dayan and Danker sang “Lu Yehi” in Hebrew and “Let It Be” in English, a song describing the desire for peace, a visibly moved Biden called them over and asked to shake their hands. After Danker shook hands with him, Biden went towards Dayan and offered his hand. Dayan however gave him a deep bow but did not extend her hand despite the president’s gesture. Despite the awkwardness of the situation, the newly religious singer maintained her values and did not shake hands with the president.
Dayan explained her decision in a post she published afterwards, stating that “I was so excited by the occasion and by the special role I was given. In the last week, during the preparations for the ceremony, I made sure to announce a number of times to whoever I could that I am Shomeres Negiah. I had no intention of insulting and only wished to represent our country with honor and stay faithful to my principles as a religious girl. Thank you for all of the positive responses.”
Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu praised Dayan for her courageous act, stating that “We should admire Yuval Dayan for withstanding the test. In her merit everyone will know what Shmiras Negiah means. From now, thousands of women in the world will not give their hand to a man and thousands of men won’t offer their hand to women, they’ll understand that one can say hello warmly without touching or shaking hands, patting on the shoulder, hugging or kissing.”
1 comment:
If she was Muslim, anyone who criticized her not shaking Biden's hand would be labeled Islamophobic. But because she's a Jew...
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