Bennett accepts gay TV star’s invite to come out… to dinner
In a bid to sway Jewish Home leader on gay rights, celebrity presenter Assi Azar asks him to double date with their partners
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleDebra writes for the JTA, and is a former features writer for The Times of Israel.
An openly gay celebrity, a staunchly conservative MK and their spouses walk into a kosher restaurant.
It may sound like the beginning of a joke, but it’s actually television presenter Assi Azar’s plan to sway conservative Jewish Home party leader Naftali Bennett to support gay-rights legislation in Israel. Earlier this month, Azar — the host of “Big Brother” and “Rising Star” — posted an open message on social media, inviting Bennett and his wife to join him and his partner for a meal, insisting that if Bennett could see gay love first-hand, it would sway him.
Bennett and his party have been at the forefront of a movement to squash legislation pushing for equal rights for gay couples. The party earlier this month struck down a Yesh Atid-backed law that would grant same-sex Israeli couples with children the same sort of tax benefits that straight couples receive.
Surprisingly, however, Bennett accepted’s Azar’s invitation, and now all that is left is for the pair of couples to pick a date and time to sit down together and break bread.
In Azar’s letter, which was also signed by his partner, and their dog Amos, he wrote:
“I want to tell you something, Naftali Bennett. Love is above all. Above religion, politics and ego. Naftali, my dear brother, my partner Albert and I would be happy to meet with you and your wife for dinner to show you that we’re just like you, and if we’re just like you, we deserve the same legal rights as you.”
No news yet on which party plans to pick up the check.
The Times of Israel Community.