Rabbi Benjamin Holtzman of Kibbutz Ma'ale Gilboa recently celebrated his first grandson Lavi's circumcision ceremony with family and friends. However, the joyous event was somewhat overshadowed by an incident that occurred afterward online, causing Holtzman to reflect sadly on how countries, leaders, and organizations throughout history have treated one of the most important Jewish traditions.
According to Holtzman, one of the attendees recorded the ceremony on their phone and uploaded it to YouTube to share with family members. However, access to the video was blocked.
"What bothered me most was the message on the website explaining the reason for blocking it," Holtzman said. "It states that 'content that endangers the emotional or physical health of minors cannot be published on YouTube' – this reminded me of reasoning and excuses used throughout history to try to abolish Jewish customs – particularly the circumcision ceremony."
Holtzman added that the person who uploaded the video appealed to YouTube about the block, but received a generic response, and the appeal was rejected.
Holtzman published a post on another social network (Facebook) describing the video block and added, "Even the Greeks and Romans banned circumcision under the pretext of bodily harm. Apparently, already Antiochus (167 BCE), and certainly Hadrian (117 CE) prohibited 'castration and circumcision.' And now YouTube is joining them."
"An appeal was also submitted to YouTube, and unlike Antoninus Pius, the emperor who exempted Jews from the decree (but not other peoples, effectively preventing conversion) – YouTube rejected the appeal and maintained its ban on uploading circumcision ceremony videos," he added. "I assume the initial removal was automatic, due to the video's subject, not because someone complained about the content, but when it comes to appeals, they should dedicate more thought and thorough examination to it."
"I think there needs to be more sensitivity to this issue, especially considering recent attempts in European countries to pass decisions against circumcision," Holtzman said. "Sometimes they call it 'harm to minors' and sometimes 'preserving bodily purity,' but it joins a disturbing wave against Jewish traditions that have accompanied us for many generations, such as circumcision and kosher slaughter, for example."
Eventually, Holtzman reported, the circumcision ceremony video was uploaded to another internet video sharing service, and the memento from the happy day was distributed among family members.
YouTube responded, "We reviewed the video and found it does not violate our Community Guidelines, as it was shared in an educational, documentary, scientific, or artistic context (EDSA). However, since the video includes nudity of minors, it is not suitable for all viewers and therefore has an age restriction."
It should be noted that, according to the company's child protection policy, content that includes nudity of minors cannot be uploaded to the platform. However, there may be very limited exceptions, but even in these cases, the content may be subject to age restrictions if it is not suitable for all viewing audiences.
