While anti-Semitism in the world has been rampant since October 7 and conservative parties that oppose LGBT people are gaining momentum, some are stuck between a rock and a hard place – those who were born as both – Jews and LGBT people. In the USA, Europe, Latin America, and all over the world – LGBT Jewish activists are fighting for recognition, inclusion and security – for both the Jewish and the LGBT community
Translated from the original Hebrew in ynet: https://www.ynet.co.il/yedioth/article/yokra14021635
by Ofer Chizik
Usually, for hundreds of thousands of LGBT Jews around the world, Pride Month is an annual peak event, a time of self-expression, of completion and a sense of belonging. An opportunity to turn to the world and say: I’m Jewish, I’m LGBT, accept me as I am. But this year, in the shadow of the war and the disturbing increase in anti-Semitism specifically in the liberal groups, this important month was especially scary.
America, the “Golden Medina”, which was considered for decades the safe haven for diaspora Jews – has become a scary place for LGBT Jews. In a country where 11 percent of Jews define themselves as gay, lesbian or bisexual, it seems that the environment is no longer as safe as it used to be.
“We’re all afraid of the situation,” says Ethan Felson, Executive Director of A Wider Bridge, one of the largest LGBT Jewish organizations in the US, when I asked him about violence against LGBT Jews after October 7. But he does not intend to surrender: “We proudly marched in parades, because no one can take away our Pride. They tried and failed. True, there were people who mocked Jews and supporters of Israel at Pride events, just like they did on college campuses. This is a campaign aimed to intimidate LGBT Jews. There is anti-Semitism is embedded in it, but we didn’t let them win.”
According to Felson, contrary to the images seen in Israel, the increase in anti-Zionism and antisemitism in the American gay community is no different from what is seen in the rest of the American population: “LGBT leaders in more than 100 cities supported our fight against anti-Semitism in the queer community. There is an increase in anti-Semitism in many sectors, and it impacts LGBTQ people too. But as a community, LGBTQ people reject the notion of Jews as ‘oppressors’ the same as non-LGBTQ people reject it. Although LGBT people belong more to the progressive camp, they don’t associate ‘oppression’ specifically with Jews, and neither does the general public. However, there is the minority of anti-Israel activists in the gay community, and they make noise.”
Felson explains that the strength of this group is actually its size: “One of the most powerful tactics in public relations is that of the “surprising validator.” When support for Hamas comes from queer groups, it is implied that the gay community is anti-Israel – which it is not. It’s a fringe, but because it comes from within the progressive camp, it is a very powerful voice.”
How do you explain the pictures of Queers for Palestine?
“Do you know the term cosplay? (People who dress up as characters from anime series – OC). It’s a Keffiyeh-cosplay. It is part of the rise in antisemitism. And it is magnified by the normalization of the the use of the term ‘Zionism’ as a pejorative. This is one of the biggest challenges since October 7 – the replacement of Jews with ‘Zionsists’, and the use of ‘Zionsists’ as a ‘safe’ way to insult Jews. You are not considered antisemitic if you use ‘Zionsists’ instead of ‘Jews.’ This is pervasive on the left in America today. The LGBT community is a few clicks to the left of the non-LGBT community, so we feel it a little more.”
In addition, according to Felson, the (Israeli) government has an influence on this narrative: “We have heard from many LGBT leaders in America that government ministers who oppose the LGBT community have tarnished Israel’s reputation as a safe place for the gay community. It is difficult for them to separate this from their understanding of the State of Israel as a whole.”
Felson points to an anomaly in American society: precisely when the gay community in the US is in danger, the handful of noisy activists focus on Israel: “In a year with more transphobic legislation than we’ve ever seen – they’re busy supporting those who support throwing LGBT people off rooftops. Where would you rather go to a gay rooftop partyTel Aviv, or Gaza?”.
Did you receive specific threats?
We have heard from many people who received hateful comments. An organizer of a large LGBT event was attacked online because he’s a Zionist. People have used a language of hate. In Pride events this year, there were signs like “no pride in genocide”, shirts that said “stop settler colonialism”. But it’s not just that: this Pride month we had to worry about foreign terrorist organizations and their supporters bringing harm to Pride – along with lone wolves. (The FBI and Department of Homeland Security issued a warning about this.) There are enough people who want to take our Pride away.
However, Felson points to a bright spot: the support from the Jewish community. “We’ve had amazing support. For example, numerous organizations – including the Conference of Presidents, Jewish Federations of North America, the American Jewish Committee and the Anti-Defamation League – and many others forwarded a letter with our concerns and requests to Congress calling for security for LGBT Jews.”
Partial security
But not all Jewish communities support LGBT Jews to the same extent. Ariel Heller, a 28-year-old young man from Rome, is a member of the board of directors of Keshet, Italy’s LGBT Jewish organization. “When we asked for help from the Orthodox Jewish community, because it is the largest in Rome – they did not want to help us. It is not a law, but there is a practice that when there is a Jewish protest in the city – it will receive security, because it is a Jewish protest. They said they would not provide us security, because it took place on the Sabbath “.
As Ariel describes, there was definitely a need for security: “Since October 7, we have all noticed an increase in anti-Semitism, especially in the queer community. Organizations in Europe have issued all kinds of statements about the situation in Gaza, even though they have no authority to speak about an 80-year conflict. They issue political statements that use the language which not only has an anti-Zionist flavor, but actually says things that fall within the IHRA definitions of anti-Semitism” (The IHRA definition of anti-Semitism states that certain expressions directed against Israel – when it is perceived as a Jewish collective, or when the criticism of it is not similar to that directed at other countries in similar situations – can be considered anti-Semitism ).
“This leads us to the last pride month – after we were betrayed by a part of our community, many decided not to march in the parade. It was far too dangerous for us. We will not leave the gay movement, we can’t, we are part of it. Some of us were there, in the parades – But we had to leave a part of our identity aside. Those of us who marched did not go with flags and Jewish symbols. Why did they even ask us to bring Israeli flags? From those who bring Palestinian flags – this is anti-Semitic rhetoric.”
Ariel even says that he is considering leaving his job at the LGBT organization due to the anti-Semitism he experienced. “I am very angry. I’m about to cry, really. During Pride month they called me a Nazi, they called me a fascist, they called me a Zionist – when they don’t even know what a Zionist is. But they certainly know what a Nazi is – and call me that on purpose. It’s totally crazy. I started going to a psychologist after October 7th because I felt personally attacked by my community. Every day I am personally attacked for Israel in our community, as if I have something to do – they tell me to call Netanyahu and tell him to stop the war. Why don’t you call Sinwar?”
Still, something doesn’t make sense in a situation where the group that is supposed to be the most liberal actually goes against the Jews and Zionism. Dalia Greenfeld, the director of the European division of the Anti-Defamation League and a Jewish-LGBT activist from Germany, explains: “Anti-Semitism exists in society as a whole, and also in progressive communities. But since October 7, opposition to Zionism has erupted in liberal spaces, especially in queer ones. Many of them see Israelis as ‘white colonialists’ – even before that Jews were rejected from queer spaces, they were told they were not welcome there. When you look at the data, in Germany specifically, many LGBT organizations did not come out with statements of support for Israel after October 7 – the queer community did not make anything important out of it. Many queer organizations supported anti-Zionist statements.”
What makes them think of Zionists as colonialists?
“Every activist group needs a common enemy. The common enemy in the progressive community has become Israel. Israel is seen as a colonialist project, and the progressive ideology is to fight white supremacy, colonialism, and Israel falsely falls into these categories. This is a false narrative. To be an active member of these progressive spaces, you must be anti-Zionist – it’s hard to be a member of a progressive space if you’re a Zionist, it’s very difficult, even impossible. It only became more radical on October 7.”
The complexity that LGBT Jews face this year is global. Even in South America, as is evident from the words of Yael Frieda Gutman, a non-binary from the field of comedy, drag and the performing arts, the anti-Semitism towards Jewish queers in the gay community rears its head: “All my friends began to feel very scared Until October 7, I used to say everywhere that I was Jewish, without fear, and everywhere they would ask – ‘What about Palestine?’ Today it is more difficult for me to say that I am Jewish. I am afraid that they will know. I think that people have no knowledge of what happened in Israel, and the feeling that there is a Palestinian flag everywhere is not nice. I go to every protest or pride parade. This year was the first time I saw a woman with a veil in the parades. There was a woman there who was completely covered in a veil and body coverings, with a Palestinian flag, and this was the first time I was really afraid – what is going on here? People don’t usually wear head coverings in Argentina. I believe that it is dangerous for us to have women dressed like that. Body expression is a very important thing. It’s a tradition that doesn’t allow you to see the body, the body is censored.”
How will they react if you go to the parade with a pride flag and the Star of David?
“I don’t know. I won’t feel rejected. But everyone will ask me why I’m not with the Palestinian flag. Here in the LGBT community we have many Jews – but it’s not something that is welcomed, to express Zionism. At the moment, for me, LGBTI and Zionism collide – here they are talking loudly about the ‘genocide of the Palestinian people’ after October 7. I feel that it is a problem to express my Judaism, that I do not have the freedom to express my Zionism. I do not feel. sure. We do it”.
And how is it that they do not address the fact that Israel is actually very pro-LGBT?
“I think that there is not much knowledge here about how important the LGBT issue is in Israel. I think it’s not something that’s talked about. They don’t understand what’s happening in the Middle East.”