No pride parade for Ra’anana on Friday

A gay pride parade in Ra’anana on Friday will not take place as originally planned, after the organizers reached an agreement with Mayor Nahum Hofri. The planned march has been cancelled and an event on a smaller scale is to be held in a parking lot instead.

The municipality said the parade could hurt the feelings of a high proportion of the city’s residents and organizers agreed to the smaller event.

Preparations for the parade had been under way for two months, and Facebook groups had sprung up calling for its cancellation. The municipality’s own Facebook page featured jibes posted by locals aimed at the LGBT community, which the city removed.

“We wish to hold a modest event rather than stage a protest; we are interested in promoting tolerance and acceptance. The idea is to gain recognition for the gay community as representing these values, not to pose an affront to the religious contingent,” an official of the Tehila group, a support group for LGBT individuals that is organizing the event, was quoted as saying.

“The pride event is a globally recognized concept and it is suited to the character of Ra’anana as a city,” said the Tehila official. “The event will be held in the spirit of tolerance and with no political agenda, although certain political parties have chosen to send representatives to attend and support the event.”