We’re Here, We’re Queer and We’re in Abject Denial

My latest post for NewsReal:

Earlier this week, a group called Queers Against Israeli Apartheid boasted about the fact that the Pride Toronto organizers had voted to reverse a decision which would now let them march in the Gay Pride parade. They proudly touted it as a blow against censorship and then issued this statement:

“This is a victory for the Palestine solidarity movement, which has faced censorship and bullying tactics from the Israel lobby for far too long,” says Tim McCaskell, a member of Queers Against Israeli Apartheid. “The Israel lobby learned a tough lesson today about our community’s proud history of standing up to censorship and human rights abuses.”

Proud history of standing up to censorship and human rights abuses? Yeah, you know who actually does do that? Israel. Do you know who would want to punish you, by death, for being gay? Palestine.

Not only does this group try to equate Israel with apartheid, which is odious in and of itself, but they are either grossly intellectually dishonest or they are in abject denial. They are embracing a culture that goes against our very core principles as human beings. They are embracing a culture that considers women as chattel and non-human. They want to be “inclusive”, and defend no less, a country that kills people — for being gay. They are marching to show pride so that gay people in the West don’t have to stay in the closet longer than desired. Yet, they are supporting Palestine, where they would need to stay in a steel-encased panic room, forever.

They are vilifying the one country in the middle east that truly embraces diversity by believing in Freedom; Israel.  The Judeo-Christian ethic has done the most good in the World. Always has and always will. The Judeo-Christian ideals of freedom and respect for the individual rights of men – and women, gay or straight, Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist – all are welcome in Israel.

In Palestine? Not so much.

It’s not just Toronto. The Madrid Gay Pride parade banned a delegation from Tel Aviv from participating in their march. How tolerant! The banned Tel Aviv delegation had this to say:

Among other things, Tel Aviv had planned to take the Spanish organisers of the march to Gaza so they could witness a place “that is controlled by the fundamentalists of Hamas, who do not respect any human rights and believe that homosexuals should be killed,” Schwartz said.

“We invited the organisers of the gay pride event in Madrid to join a march this Friday in Tel Aviv, the only place in the Middle East where you can be gay in public,” he said.

“They would be able to talk to Arab gays who travel here secretly because they would be murdered at home if they revealed their sexuality.”

Israel. The only place in the Middle East where one can be gay in public, without fear of being jailed, tortured or killed. The useful idiots aligning with Palestine don’t even realize that Hamas, a terrorist organization intent on “wiping Israel off the map“, is also oppressing some of its own people, particularly women and homosexuals. But, see, this doesn’t matter to them. Hamas is anti-Israel and anti-America. This is all that matters. Because George Bush. And evil capitalist America. They are willing to turn a blind eye to true oppression and homophobia so rampant that it results in bloodshed and death, as long as it fits with their preferred global agenda.

Perhaps they should celebrate diversity by being, you know, honest. And by truly being open-minded, letting themselves out of their ideological closets.

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(h/t Dejrabel’s twitter feed)