The Grotesque Limits of ''Liberal'' Israel

Angry Israelis at Pride

Today I went to London Pride for the first time! Because I've mostly dated cis women in the part I've never felt especially oppressed due to my sexuality (apart from some bullying over the years) but friends wanted to go and, if my colours must be put to the mast, I am bi/ demi-sexual – so I went and it was fun!!

There was, as per last year, a lot of Palestinian flags with LGBTQ* and various queer groups marching against the genocide and for Palestinian rights.

Having danced and watched various groups march past (Great Ormond Street Hospital! Yay! Coca-Cola! Boo!) me and my partner made our way – at my behest – to Gosh! comics, as is my homing instinct when in central London. This took us past some kind of altercation between Israel supporters and a contingent of queers folks cheering for Palestine. I cheered my support for Palestine without stopping, such was the pull of buying an obscure Japanese sci-fi manga for my ex-step son. However, we ended up stuck behind a group of angry Israelis who complained that Israel is the only country in the Middle East that supports gay rights.

This is a point I have heard trotted out by supporters of Israel many times at this point (generally in support of the argument that it is hypocritical, morally bankrupt or just plain illogical for anyone who is gay, lesbian, queer or an ally of LGBTQ* individuals to support Palestine rather than Israel – a stance often expressed with aggrieved bemusment that may become incendiary if questioned).

There’s a conflation that goes on here that assumes Israeli = Liberal Jewish and Palestinian = Orthodox Muslim.

Now, not all Palestinians are orthodox Muslims, but a lot are. Before considering this, however, it is worth noting that while homosexuality is outlawed in Gaza, that is a law inherited from the British Mandate. Indeed, colonial jurisprudence tended to impose homophobic laws where not previously existed. Notably, homosexual acts are not illegal in the West Bank.

However, I have taught some Muslim students (as well, I will add, as Christian students) who have expressed their belief that homosexuality is wrong – a view they’ve often seemingly taken from their parents. Sometimes this has been straight-forwardly expressed; other times it has been expressed in outright offensive ways.

I STILL TEACH THESE STUDENTS AND WOULD NOT WANT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, TO SEE THEM STARVED TO DEATH SINCE I AM NOT A PSYCHOPATH!

As my partner commented [to paraphrase]: “In Iraeli, gay Israelis are allowed to have rights; in Gaza, Israel bombs gay Palestinians to death”.

A country’s human rights records are irrelevent if they’re committing genocide. I’m sure Leopold II of Belgium kept the plants in his tropical arboretum nicely watered while he had millions of Congolese villagers killed to terrorise the population into collecting more rubber. So fucking what? I don’t need to sit down to watch radical queer cinema with everyone Palestinian in Gaza, I need Israelis to not brually murder them in an utterly transparent campaign of ethical cleansing.

Also, in my experience (and this is anecdotal) individuals from Muslim cultures often highly value hospitality and respect. I have interacted with many Muslim students over the years who have been scrupulously polite and respectful even when it’s probably been apparent [as a teacher or lecturer you try not to proselytize, but it was easy to work out at my old school that the History department were largely Zionists and that the English department were largely embittered Leftists] that my own views have differed substantially from their own. Despite Israelis claiming that a gay Westerner would be stoned or killed by a mob of homophobic Palestinians as soon as they entered Gaza, I strongly suspect offers of food and shelter would come before anything else.

By contrast (again anecdotal and not representative of everyone from either country) while white Israelis and South Africans come from countries where homosexuality is decriminalised, individuals from both countries can act in arrogant or bullying ways when visiting countries that are not their own. I’m British and – frankly – we are also notorious for this. Realistically, it makes sense that white members of a colonial or post-colonial country might sometimes act as wankers when abroad, even if the country is nominally a democracy with some liberal laws on the books. In short, being tolerant on paper does not always means being tolerant in person (and vice versa!)

At heart, the argument that “Israel is the only Middle Eastern country to support gay rights” is an appeal to the idea that Israel is the only modern, "civilised" democracy in the Middle East. However, if civilisation looks like torture, sadism and unbridled arrogance, then it is better that we were never civilised.

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For most readers here, it won’t be anything new, but if you are more inclined to support Israel (due to its purported liberal values) I urge you to please at least watch Gaza: Doctors Under Attack:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iv3wpeJ6Oco

EDIT: This is a terrific article by Schuyler Mitchell on the intersection of TERFism and Zionism:
https://thebaffler.com/latest/pinkwashing-the-timeline-mitchell