Thousands of Israelis gathered in support of the judicial reform in front of the Supreme Court building in Jerusalem on Thursday night, ahead of a hearing on Tuesday for petitions against the only legal overhaul article to pass into law.
Waving Israeli flags and carrying signs, the men, women, and children swayed to music as they awaited more protesters to flood into the street.
Men dressed in banana costumes came jaunting past Cinema City, proclaiming that that the country was like a banana republic due to the power exerted by the justices.
They carried a large banner with Supreme Court President Esther Hayut and other justices portrayed as Roman emperors.
On the main stage screen and speakers, a rap song asserted that the Supreme Court was attacking religious values, settlements, and the military, and allowing events like the Eritrean riots that struck south Tel Aviv on Saturday.
Another video asserted that the military was made up of more and more people from religious and periphery backgrounds. One humorous skit claimed that the court was forcing reservists to operate with their hands tied behind their backs.
“Don’t cancel me!”
Speakers assembled on the stage included Religious Zionist MK Orit Struck, MK Boaz Bizmuth, Tekuma 2023 head Berale Crombie, and Im Tirzu head Matan Peleg.
Struck assured that she would work to implement policies that the crowd had voted for.
Peleg said that democracy was in danger, and the court was set to conduct two terrorist attacks in September by ruling on basic laws.
“We won’t accept a judicial dictatorship of the Supreme Court,” said Peleg. “Israel won’t be a Jewish state or a democratic state if it cancels laws chosen by the nation.”
The government’s hands were tied in the fight against terrorism and lawlessness in the Negev, said Peleg.
“Supreme Court, don’t cancel me!” Read many of the signs created by Tekuma 2023, the main organizer of the rally.
On Tuesday the court was set to hear arguments against the reasonableness standard law, which passed on July 24. The law was a basic law amendment, which has never been struck down by the court. It is hotly contested, as Knesset speaker Amir Ohana demonstrated in a statement on Wednesday night, whether the court has the power to strike down such quasi-constitutional legislation.
Yet it wasn’t the legal question that occupied the minds of protesters, but what they saw as fair democratic outcomes.
Moriyah, a girl handing out pro-coalition stickers, said that the event was important to show that it wasn’t acceptable that the court was ruling over them and lying to them. They had elected a government and expected its governance rather than that of the Supreme Court.
“We want to show them that we’re the majority and we’ll fight for ourselves,” said Moriyah.
Chanoch, an Oleh from Brooklyn, said that the opposition was attacking Jewish values and allying with far-left extremists and Palestinians.
“The issue is about a secular country versus a Jewish country,” said Chanoch. “What are we supposed to do? We can’t talk with them. They’re distorting the truth.”
Crombie wrote on social media ahead of the rally that the right should stop using the term constitutional crisis.
“There won’t be any crisis because in a democratic country, the government and the Knesset representing the people have the last word and only they should be heard,” Crombie wrote. “And if the High Court wants chaos, it will get chaos.”