Yehuda Levi Reveals Childhood Bullying and Family Financial Crisis

Israeli actor Yehuda Levi has shared a deeply personal account of his childhood experiences with bullying and a sudden family departure from South Africa due to financial hardship. In a post for the "Red Line" campaign, initiated by the President's Office to combat boycotts and bullying, Levi detailed being ostracized by classmates in elementary school. He recounted a particularly painful birthday party in sixth grade where friends announced they no longer wanted to be his friends, followed by mockery and avoidance.

Levi found solace in movies and developed a chameleon-like ability to adapt to his surroundings and understand others' expectations, a skill that later fueled his acting career. He described this period as learning to "read a room" and "change accordingly."

Alongside the bullying, Levi revealed that his family had to leave South Africa abruptly due to an economic crisis, preventing him from saying goodbye to loved ones, including two close friends. "I left without saying goodbye," he wrote, noting that he only later understood the profound impact these experiences had on his adult relationships.

He explained that his desire to be loved was intertwined with a fear of getting hurt, leading him to sometimes push people away to protect himself. Levi acknowledged that he too has hurt others, sometimes using humor insensitively, and has disappeared from people's lives without explanation. He expressed a desire for the new year to be less about "running away" and "hiding behind cynicism" and more about allowing good people to stay.

Becoming a father to his daughter Naya has intensified his concerns about social vulnerability. While he cannot shield her from all harm, he wants her to know she is worthy of love without changing herself. He also hopes that if she is in a socially stronger position, she will "open the circle" to others. Levi urged parents to broaden conversations about bullying, not just asking if their child is being bullied, but also if they see others being targeted and what they do about it, emphasizing that "sometimes one child deciding not to participate can stop a boycott."