Shikli enters where there is no entry and not on a dead-end road

Minister Amichai Shikli mocked the Russian accent of Avigdor Lieberman in a live interview, an act perceived as an insult to the Russian-speaking community in Israel. The column discusses the boundaries of public discourse, the trivialization of ethnicity as a political tool, and the danger of legitimizing mockery toward those without political power.

Lena Rusovsky's column addresses an incident in which Minister of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism, Amichai Shikli, mocked the Russian accent of Avigdor Lieberman during a live interview on Radio 104.5. The writer sharply criticizes the behavior, noting that an accent is not an opinion or political stance but a marker of origin. She emphasizes that this concerns over one million Russian-speaking Israelis, including new immigrants from Ukraine and Russia, and that the mockery by a senior minister has broad social implications. The writer argues that this act legitimizes mockery toward weaker populations, such as new children in a classroom or foreign workers. She calls for setting clear boundaries in public discourse and condemning offensive behavior, highlighting the irony that a minister responsible for combating antisemitism is the one mocking someone's origin.