Ahead of the sentencing in the case of Amit Almog, who was convicted of murdering Maya Vishniak, a billboard campaign was put up Sunday night at several prominent locations in Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan, including near Almog's home. The campaign, part of the "The Shame Changes Sides" initiative, displayed Vishniak's image along with the message, "The shame changes sides."
The organizers said the goal is to return Vishniak's presence to the public sphere in the days before sentencing and to remind the public that behind the legal process is a young woman whose life was violently cut short, and a family that has waited years for justice. Vishniak was murdered in 2020, before her 22nd birthday, and the case has become one of the most closely identified in Israel with the fight against violence against women.
The initiative said that as court proceedings advance, public attention often shifts toward the defendant while the victim's memory is pushed aside. Yael Verd, who founded the initiative, said, "Years have passed since Maya was murdered, but time does not dull her family's pain or lessen our duty as a society to remember. Just before the verdict, we wanted to bring Maya back into the public space, to remind people that behind every criminal case there are lives that were cut short and a family waiting for justice. The shame should remain in only one place, with the one who chooses violence."
The campaign also incorporates the flower drawings Vishniak made during her lifetime, which were part of the original project and became one of its most recognizable symbols. The billboards were installed on the digital screen wall at Expo Tel Aviv on Rokach Boulevard, on the Aba Hillel Bridge in Ramat Gan, on the Aluf Sadeh Bridge, on Jabotinsky Street near the stock exchange at the entrance to Tel Aviv, and on the giant screen wall at the BSR complex in Ramat Gan.
