Political Messages Cannot be Banned from Pride Marches
- ACRI
- Jun 16
- 3 min read
On August 19, 2025, before the Pride parade was scheduled to take place in Haifa, ACRI contacted the commander of the Haifa police station following reports about the intention of the Haifa police to restrict freedom of expression at the event. Among other things, we learned that the police were tasked with ensuring that there were no signs, flags, or messages along the parade route that were, in the view of the police, unrelated to Pride. The police have taken a similar approach at Pride parades in Haifa in recent years. They also have a tendency to use violence and arrests to disperse demonstrations in the city that oppose the war and criticize Israeli policy.
In the appeal, Lilit Bartana from Haifa's HaKeshet and Attorney Eden Gilad, Freedom of Protest Coordinator at ACRI, wrote that what the police are attempting is illegal, and cited a previous court ruling on a petition submitted by ACRI that includes explicit statements by the Police Commissioner and the Police Legal Advisor that "Israel Police has no guidelines prohibiting protesters from expressing political positions, carrying signs or calling slogans for or against the war." Gilad and Bartana also emphasized that the Pride parade in Haifa is not just a festive event celebrating the community, but primarily a protest march and public demonstration, which, like any protest, is not limited to specific messages.
The appeal states: "The participants in the Pride parade do not need approval from the Haifa police for what they will say in the parade, for the clothing they will wear, or for the signs they will carry. The police have no authority when it comes to this at all. The duty of the police is to protect the marchers, to enable the parade to take place in full—including the expression of any messages—and not to restrict it, contrary to the law, in a way that harms the heart of freedom of expression."
After a later petition, the police retracted their demand and clarified that participants could express political messages and protest signs would not be inspected by police. In fact, before the 2026 Jerusalem Pride Parade, Police Commissioner told representatives of the LGBTQ community that "police officers are not supposed to interfere with the content of any protest sign."
Nonetheless, at the Tel Aviv Pride Parade police officers prevented marchers from entering the event area with "political" messages, and demanded that signs be inspected and approved. Police officers stationed at the entrance to the parade area prevented a woman wearing a shirt with a slogan against the Minister of National Security from entering, demanded that other participants show the protest signs they brought with them and stated that political messages were not allowed in the parade, and prevented a participant from entering the event area because she was carrying a megaphone.
In an appeal sent to the Police Commissioner and the Legal Advisor to the Government on June 16, 2026, ACRI Attorney Eden Gilad asserted that the conduct of the police was in violation of the law and against the rights to freedom of expression and protest. We are demanding that the cases be investigated and that the law be clarified to all officers.
Appeal by ACRI and Haifa's HaKeshet, August 19, 2025 (Heb)
ACRI's appeal, June 16, 2026 (Heb)
For articles in Hebrew about this case, see here.
