Jerusalem Open House
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| Founded | 1997 |
|---|---|
| Type | LGBT Rights |
| Location | |
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Area served
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Jerusalem |
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Key people
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Chairperson of the Board: Dana Sharon Executive Director: Sarah Kala-Meir |
| Website | joh.org.il |
The Jerusalem Open House for Pride and Tolerance (JOH, Hebrew: הבית הפתוח בירושלים לגאווה ולסובלנות HaBayit HaPatuach, "Open House" Arabic: البيت المفتوح في القدس للفخر والتسامح Al-Beit Al-Maftoukh) is a grassroots, activist organization of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) people and their allies. Since 1997, the JOH has aimed to provide direct services for the LGBT community within the city of Jerusalem and to secure LGBT rights in Israeli society at large.
The JOH annual budget is derived entirely from private donations, foundation and federation support, and membership and participation fees. The JOH does not receive financial aid from municipal, governmental sources or commercial sponsorships.
The Jerusalem Open House was founded in 1997. The annual Jerusalem Pride marches organized by the center have become the largest human-rights demonstrations in Jerusalem. In 2006 the JOH hosted WorldPride. The JOH also founded the first LGBT health clinic in Israel—the Open Clinic—and developed programming including a comprehensive youth program and unique projects bridging LGBT and religious identities.
Since the first March for Pride and Tolerance in 2002, Jerusalem Pride—"Love Without Border"—has become an established event in Jerusalem, each year bringing in additional partners and supporters.
In 2005 a municipal ban attempted to halt the parade, but it was overturned by a district court order. Protesters, many of them religious Jews, lined the mile-long parade route shouting insults and displaying signs with messages like: "You are corrupting our children," and "Jerusalem is not San Francisco." During the parade, Yishai Schlissel, a Haredi Jew, stabbed three parade participants with a kitchen knife. During a police interrogation, he described the motive behind his actions: "I came to murder on behalf of God. We can't have such abomination in the country." The perpetrator was subsequently convicted of three counts of attempted murder and sentenced to 12 years in prison. The Jerusalem District Court also ordered that NIS 280 million (about USD 60 million) be paid as compensation to the victims. Schlissel was released in 2015 and returned to the Pride Parade in 2015 to attack again.
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