Just when you thought that you’ve heard it all, then there’s this. Unbelievable. These women have never really sat down to mull over their actions, that their pro-Palestinian positions undermine their own stated core values. It’s a classic example of cognitive dissonance if their ever was one. KGS
NOTE: Arafat would understand their thinking though, being a bit light in the sandal himself, and warring against Israel.
The ‘Palestinization’ of lesbian activism
[…] When I was much younger, I took an idealistic view of gays and lesbians -invariably associating them with divine artists, writers, dancers, composers, playwrights and civil rights activists. But then, when I began working with real lesbian and bisexual women as part of my feminist activism, I discovered that -like everyone else -lesbians were neither angels nor devils. Like men, many lesbian feminists I met had internalized sexism and homophobia, and did not really respect or trust other women. In many cases that I observed, they used their intimate groups to bully, isolate and then shun any lesbian feminist who was “out of line” -despite the common pretense that feminist groups are leaderless and free-thinking.
In particular, I discovered that lesbians, bisexuals and “queers” often are expected to toe a party line when it comes to the Middle East. I am talking about the Palestinianization of lesbian feminists, including -perhaps especially -Jewish lesbian feminists, who are more concerned with the rights of a country that does not exist, “Palestine,” than with the rights of real Muslim women who are forced to veil themselves, accept arranged marriages and whom are victimized by honour killings when they are seen as too western or disobedient.
I have seen these North American lesbian “queers” at university-based Israel Apartheid Week events in America and Canada, wearing kaffiyas, sporting buttons that say “I am a Palestinian,” “I am a Jewish antiZionist” or “Jews For Justice in Palestine.” Many wear military buzz cuts and boots, carry heavy backpacks and sport other insignia of the EuropeanArab Street and ACT-UP-style protests. Were these women to dress this way in the West Bank or Gaza, they would be persecuted for their appearance -or worse.
