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8 Tishrei 5777 - October 10, 2016 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
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NEWS
The Kippa Parade

by Aryeh Zisman

Which kippot did world leaders choose to wear at Peres' funeral — and who refrained from this gesture?

The same question arose many years ago at the funeral of Rabin which was attended by a roster of world leaders; it was repeated now, at Peres' funeral. It should be noted that wearing a head covering was not required in the least but each one made this decision on his own in order to show respect to the Jewish leader. The non-Jewish world leaders did so out of their own free will while some MK's —admittedly not many — also out of their own free will, refrained from putting on a kippa.

It was interesting to note the different styles that were chosen, or not chosen, for that matter. Not one wore the knitted kippa associated with the rightist Religious Nationalists (Mafdal), apparently recognizing what it symbolized (right-wing politically) and wishing to remain politically neutral.

On some heads, the kippa actually sat well, almost naturally, one example being former President Clinton. Some world leaders made the effort to retain their headgear throughout the ceremony, not an easy feat for first-timers.

President Obama wore a plain black one and the effect, so some maintained, made him resemble an Ethiopian immigrant. Clinton's kippa was a large black one which reposed firmly on the top of his head, lending him the appearance of "an American chareidi come to spend Yom Tov in his Rehavia apartment!"

The Spanish king, Philipp the Sixth, sported a velvet kippa. With his well groomed beard, he could almost have been mistaken for a Modern Orthodox Jew. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau surprised the public with a high velvet kippa complete with a ribbon. Even more noticeable was Prince Charles who wore a high navy blue kippa with the royal insignia embroidered on the front which had probably been designed with the help of the Israeli embassy in London.

Prime Minister Netanyahu presented with a plain black kippa like he always wears when it is politically-correctly called for, but this time, it was laid back on his head and was not visible in the photos. The contrast was striking: whereas the world leaders wore their kippot proudly, Netanyahu kept his on low profile.

President Rivlin came with a childish decorated blue kippa, while Herzog wore his usual knitted one. Peres' children wore plain black ones, the kind their father used to wear when called for. The security guards circulated energetically with their plain black kippot. Former British prime minister Tony Blair secured his kippa, identical to the one John Kerry wore, with a pin.

The only one who refused to wear one was aggressively secular French President Francois Hollande. Behind him sat former French president Sarkozy with a kippa duly planted on his head. Was this a reflection of his intention to make a comeback to politics in the coming elections?

 

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