Patriarchal, Theocratic, Apartheid Fail. Israel holds first Trans-beauty Contest

Hows that patriarchal theocratic apartheid state working for you, Israel?

To mark the beginning of pride month, Israel just held it first Trans-beauty contest. Ta'alin abu Hanna, 21, a Christian Arab-Israeli from Northern Israel was crowned the winner at  the Habima national theater and will represent Israel at the Miss Trans Star International pageant in Barcelona in September.

CREDIT: Menahem Kahana/AFP/Getty Images

CREDIT: Menahem Kahana/AFP/Getty Images

From Reuters:
Abu Hanna, 21, told journalists. "Our country allowed me, a Christian Arab from Nazareth, to end the war between my soul and my body. So if it made peace for me, our country is only a country of peace..."

Carolin Khoury, a Muslim contestant, said she hoped Friday's contest would "send a message to the Arab communities in Israel or abroad, to accept the other".

More photos at CBS News

Pinkwash this. Palestinians Whitewash LGBT flag

Pinkwash this.

Palestinians have white-washed a rainbow flag painted on  Palestinian side of the security barrier.

Can't show tolerance. No. Not that.

The painter of the flag, Khaled Jarrar, told the Associated Press that the destruction “reflects the absence of tolerance and freedoms in the Palestinian society.”

One man said he helped whitewash the flag because “we cannot promote gay rights.” According to the  Pew research center , 93% of Palestinians believe homosexuality should not be accepted in society.

From Haaretz:

The artwork ignited angry responses among Palestinians and activists whitewashed the flag on Monday night, just a few hours after it was painted on the best known section of Israel's graffiti-covered barrier, next to a portrait of Yasser Arafat and other Palestinian leaders.

Jarrar, 39, who has exhibited in Europe and the United States, told The Associated Press that the destruction "reflects the absence of tolerance, and freedoms in the Palestinian society."

"People don't accept different thinking in our society," he said, adding he drew the rainbow flag on the barrier to put a spotlight on Palestinian issues.

On the Israeli side of the security barrier, nearly 180,000 people participated in the 17th annual Tel Aviv Pride Festival and Parade , the largest LGBT event in the Middle East.

Anti-Israel activists threaten to silence LGBT voices at UC Santa Cruz

This weeks events at UC Davis highlighted the increasingly shrill intolerance of anti-Israel activists and their efforts to drown out opposing voices on California campuses. The  exposure of the anti-Semitism at the heart of the BDS movement, the taunts of "Allahu Akbar"directed towards Jewish students and the poisoned campus climate have had a chilling effect that extends well beyond the boundaries of the bucolic Davis campus.

No, Davis is not alone in this struggle.

Tyler Gregory, the Director of Programs and Development  at A Wider Bridge was recently invited to UC Santa Cruz by the staff of Hillel.  The  program was scheduled for the Lionel Cantu LGBT Center on campus. According to Tyler, his objective was " to engage LGBT students with Israel through the experiences of Israeli LGBT people – their challenges and victories, their fight for equality, and their desire to live and to love."

Tyler Gregory has documented how  "students and faculty, unsuccessfully attempted to use intimidation to cancel the event", and failing that, threatened to drown out their voices.

No, it was not the Westboro Baptist church trying to silence the voices of LGBT activists. It wasn't a far right homophobic  group, motivated by religious fervor. It  wasn't a neo-fascist group.
Had it been, perhaps this story would have been more widely heard,

It was anti-Israel activists that threatened to silence LGBT voices at UC Santa Cruz

Tyler writes:

The day of the program, Israel's detractors at Santa Cruz began contacting the LGBT Center to demand that the program be canceled and then to threaten that they would block students' entry to the event. The environment in and around the LGBT Center, intended to be a safe place for students, became so hostile and threatening that the program was relocated. With the leadership of Cantu Center Director Deb Abbott, Hillel Director Jim Atkins, and UC Santa Cruz Provost Elizabeth Abrams, the program moved forward successfully at the campus' Merrill College.

What is it about what I had to say that so angered or threatened the protesters that, rather than simply not attend, they seemed determined to deny interested students the opportunity to learn, engage, and come to their own conclusions? Our nuanced message about Israel and its LGBT community — thriving, yet still yearning for equality, doesn't fit well into their black and white world, in which Israel is nothing more than a pariah state. The students who came to the program that evening learned that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have allowed gays and lesbians to serve openly since 1993, the same year Bill Clinton signed "Don't Ask Don't Tell" into law. They discovered that LGBT Israelis have been protected from workplace discrimination since 1992, while the US Congress in 2015 has still failed to pass ENDA. At the same time, I didn't shy from sharing that same sex marriages are not yet legally performed anywhere in Israel and that beyond the gay "mecca" of Tel Aviv, homophobia is still widespread. Why? Because these realities aren't about promoting or rejecting Israeli governmental policies – they're about relating shared experiences to build understanding and connection.

Read it all here.

Is it really "Pinkwashing" if its true? A info-graphic from the BBC drives home the fact that Israel is the only  nation in the Middle East and north Africa, where the LGBT community has full legal and civil rights.

                        Where is it illegal to be gay?

 Just a few of the many reasons we have pride in Israel

LGBT Rights in Israel:
* Gays have had full civil rights since 1992
* Gays have full rights to serve in the military
* Gays have partner adoption rights
* Gays have partner benefits for governmental employees
* Same gender marriages preformed abroad are recognized.

LGBT Pride in Israel
* The first transgender person to win the Eurovison contest was Israeli Dana International with her song "Diva".
* Openly gay singer Ivri Lidder is one of Israel's most popular entertainers.
* Openly gay movie producer Eytan Fox has created such popular movies Yossi and Jagger, Walk on Water and The Bubble
* Openly gay politicians have served in the Kenneset and on many local councils.

Wash this! A Tumblr from Abraham's Grandchildren

Now this is funny.

From Abraham's Grandchildren, written by an "Ashkenazi Jew, Litvak, bicultural, Zionist, Semite, loves Israel, loves the many cultures of the Middle East. Hates racism, bad history, and narrishkeit about Khazars."   Check it out.

Wash this!

Some idiot in the Israel tag is now describing the Birthright trips as ‘bluewashing’. Some brief research shows this to be one of JVP’s new terms, joining ‘pinkwashing’ (Israel’s sinister and cynical insistence on giving its LGBTQ citizens rights and the protection of the law, in addition to recognition of same-sex marriages from outside the country) and ‘greenwashing’ (Israel’s cynical and sinister insistence on doing environmental shit).

‘Bluewashing’ appears to encompass any activity that involves encouraging Jews to feel a connection to Israel. This is sometimes known as ‘heritage tourism’ when other people do it.

I love the pathologizing of Israeli behavior, allow me to propose the following:

redwashing—Magen David Adom cynically provides disaster relief
orangewashing—Israel cynically exports Jaffa oranges
yellowwashing—Israeli cyclists cynically ride in the Tour de France
purplewashing—Israelis cynically pretend to care that Alice Walker won’t let The Color Purple be translated into Hebrew, when they have all read it in English anyway
indigowashing—Israelis cynically wear skinny jeans to convince the world they are hip and stylish
graywashing—Israel cynically gives old people pensions
washingwashing—Israelis cynically continue to do laundry

Queers Undermining Israel Terror (QUIT )undermines individual freedom

There's always a local angle.  Its a small world, after all.

From an article written by David-Elijah Nahmod  originally appearing in the South Florida Gay News.

In his article, "Queers for Palestine. What do they stand for?", David ponders the question,  "Can the queer movement can  align itself to the Palestinian liberation movement?",  reminding his readers that according to a 2010 report published by the International Lesbian and Gay Association homosexuality is illegal in the Hamas controlled Gaza Strip, and is punishable by up to ten years in prison. 

Sign at Frameline Film festival counterprotest :Queers for Palestine is like Turkeys for Thanksgiving

David brings up an incident several months ago, when a venerable San Francisco institution, Ciff's Variety Store was besieged by QUIT, a self identified queer anti-Israel group. Why would a queer group harass a local institution with a clear commitment to individual freedoms?

On Christmas Eve, 2012, representatives from QUIT Palestine (Queers Undermining Israeli Terror) entered Cliff’s Variety, a family owned hardware and housewares store in San Francisco’s predominately gay Castro district. The store first opened its doors in 1932.

 “They did not identify themselves when they entered the store,” Cliff’s manager Martha Jasten said to SFGN. “We felt ambushed. I had no idea what they’re after.”

After singing a mock Christmas Carol, the protesters loudly announced that the store was supporting the allegedly apartheid and genocidal policies of the Israeli government towards the Palestinian people. Store employees and security guards took the protesters by their arms and physically escorted them off the premises....

 Cliff’s Variety has been a vocal supporter of LGBT equality since the 1970s, according to Jasten.“The weekend after Black Friday is set aside as a fundraiser for the Harvey Milk Academy,” she said. “We also donate to the AIDS Emergency Fund.” The Milk Academy is a high school for LGBT youth located a few blocks from the store. The AIDS Emergency Fund provides financial assistance to low-income people with AIDS.

 
QUIT also regularly protests the Frameline LGBT film festival.  David points out that QUIT spokesperson Kate Raphael  has stated that QUIT takes no position on marriage equality, yet posted on her Facebook page  “We’re here, we’re Queer, and we don’t want marriage equality.” Why would a queer group consistently take positions that undermine the voices of the LGBT community?  It begs the question-how much of their actions are motivated by  perverse contrarian  pathology, rather than a genuine desire for social change?

Incidentally, nine months of unrelenting attacks on Cliff's appear to have ended. Sodastream is still being sold, and QUIT is searching for a new target, one perhaps with a bit less backbone than Cliff's.

Out of Israel Comes Pride: Gay men in the promised land

There is reason to feel pride in Isael's LGBT record.

* Gays have had full civil rights since 1992
* Gays have full rights to serve in the military
* Gays have partner adoption rights
* Gays have partner benefits for governmental employees
* Same gender marriages preformed abroad are recognized.

Inspired by the openness of Israeli society, gay porn producer Michael Lucas has created his first non-pornographic feature  Undressing Israel: Gay Men in the Promised Land,.  Check out the film trailer:





From Outsmart Magazine ,an article by  local journalist David-Elijah Nahmod

 When people think of Israel, they often conjure up images of suicide bombings, rocket attacks, and Orthodox Jews. During the opening moments of Undressing Israel: Gay Men in the Promised Land, the first non-pornographic feature from gay porn-king Michael Lucas, people in New York City’s Times Square are asked if they think homosexuality is legal in Israel. Many say they have no idea, while some assume it’s not.

 For nearly an hour, Lucas reveals the other side of life in the Jewish State. He visits the Knesset (the Israeli Parliament), where Parliament member Nitzan Horowitz issues a Gay Pride proclamation. In Tel Aviv, the country’s gay mecca, gay dad Yossi Berg, founder of Rainbow Families, walks with his young son and explains the importance of having children in Jewish culture.

 Lucas takes us to an Israeli gay wedding. He interviews an openly gay personal trainer, who shares his experience of coming out in the Israeli army, where homosexuality has been accepted since 1993.

 Throughout the film, Lucas makes it plainly obvious that much of Israel is a safe place to be openly gay.

 “Israel is more progressive than the United States,” he observes.

 Undressing Israel is not the first time Lucas’s camera has ventured inside the State of Israel. In 2009, he raised many eyebrows when he produced Men of Israel, the first in a series of gay adult features to be shot inside the country with an all-Sabra (Israeli-born) cast.

 Lucas, who works in New York City and Tel Aviv, has become one of Israel’s most vocal champions in the gay community. Unafraid of controversy, he’s been equally vocal in his condemnation of the virulently antigay regimes that exist in the Muslim world. His columns for publications like The Advocate, in which he harshly condemns the anti-Israel activism of queer-identified organizations like Jewish Voice for Peace, often draw fire, but he always stands his ground.

Read the whole interview at Outsmart

Stunning Pictures of This Weekend's Pride Parade In Jerusalem

Over at CIFWatch, Adam Levick posts his gorgeous pictures of the tenth annual Jerusalem Gay Pride Parade. Pinkwash this!

Frameline LGBT fim festival: Pride in Israel

There’s good reason for the LGBT community to feel pride in Israel:

LGBT Rights in Israel:

* Gays have had full civil rights since 1992
* Gays have full rights to serve in the military
* Gays have partner adoption rights
* Gays have partner benefits for governmental employees
* Same gender marriages preformed abroad are recognized.

LGBT Pride in Israel

* The first transgender person to win the Eurovison contest was Israeli Dana International with her song "Diva".
* Openly gay singer Ivri Lidder is one of Israel's most popular entertainers.
* Openly gay movie producer Eytan Fox has created such popular movies Yossi and Jagger, Walk on Water and The Bubble
* Openly gay politicians have served in the Kenneset and on many local councils.
* Tel Aviv was voted Best Gay city in 2011

From the Huffington post

"Israel's enemies recognized how favorable this record was for Israel, and that it threatened their efforts to demonize the Jewish state, so they shrewdly maneuvered to use it against her, linking promotion of Israel's LGBT record to the conflict in the West Bank and Gaza -- even though there is no connection. The idea that the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs' campaign is part of a diabolical scheme to cover up abuses of the "occupation" is completely the invention of anti-Israel queer activists; it is their great lie.

Beginning in Toronto in 2008, and later in San Francisco and New York, LGBT anti-Israel groups formed and sought to make being anti-Israel a queer value..."

How could anti-Israel activists rationalize their , well irrational hatred of Israel, one of the most progressive nations in the world when it comes to LGBT rights?

Enter "pinkwashing"


From Divest this

"The “Pinkwashing” accusation claims that any mention of the yawning chasm between Israel’s positive record on gay rights and the appalling condition of gays elsewhere in the Middle East is not really about concern over gay individuals, but is actually part of a nefarious propaganda plot by Israel supporters who just want to score points and don’t really give a fig about actual gays people or genuine gay issues.

Ignored in this faux controversy over a manufactured term is that regardless of whether or not the gay issue might be manipulated cynically by some of Israel’s defenders (a dubious proposition, at least when applied universally), there is no question regarding the truth of Israel’s superior record on this issue of importance to progressively minded audiences."

Here's where Frameline comes in .

Frameline is our local LGBT film festival- a respected and treasured institution in San Francisco. The list of sponsors reflects the diversity of the Bay area- from corporate sponsors like ATT and HBO- to local institutions such as the Rainbow grocery. The Israeli consulate and the nation of Switzerland are also sponsors. The current controversary stems from 2010 when the Israeli consulate gave money to Frameline to fly in famed Israeli filmmaker and social activist Yair Qedar. Qedar, whose film was being screened as part of the festival is also a founding editor of Pink Time, Israel's first Gay, lesbian and transgender newspaper

Several articles in a variety of fringe blogs have implied that there is something nefarious about this relationship.

From Velvet park media

"Throughout the years of protests, the festival seemed to be taking a stance of official neutrality. In a June 2010 article in the San Francisco Chronicle, K.C. Price, Executive Director of Frameline, is quoted as saying, "We understand this is a very sensitive subject for both sides. As an arts and cultural organization, we try to stay nonpartisan." In an article from the Bay Area Reporter in June 2011, Price continues: "Frameline is an arts and culture organization, and we don't take political points of view."

From PrettyQueer:

"A leaked internal report regarding the protests targetting Frameline has exposed clandestine arrangements between the film festival management and Israeli government officials. The report includes a series of emails that show Executive Director Kenneth C. Price colluding with Israeli consul general Akiva Tor to counter protests by anti-occupation activists targeting the 35-year old film festival."

Its hard to imagine whats "clandestine" about a relationship that proudly appears on all programming material, as well as on the Frameline Webpage.



Yet none of these articles mention a rather important fact- the Community Engagement & Communications Coordinator of Frameline for several years was Harris Kornstein - a notorious local anti-Israel activist.

Harris has organized boycotts of local stores that carry Israeli products. He protested an appearance of the Israeli Philharmonic at Davies hall. His organization (the IJAN) sponsored anti-semitic Indian activist Feroze Mithaborwala in a panel discussion in San Francisco. In an act of unbelievable arrogance and intolerance Harris Kornstein participated in the disruption of classes held at the San Francisco Jewish Community center. Harris was arrested for his role in this egregious act.

Its hard to re-construct Harris's relationship with this issue. Did he infiltrate Frameline simply to push his own peculiar brand of bigotry? What role did he play in leaking private information regarding the festival? It also begs the question- If Frameline's Executive Director Kenneth C. Price was less than neutral on this issue- would he have even employed such a vocal anti-Israel bigot as Harris Kornstein?

It ain't "Pinkwashing" if it's True

This one's for you, Dan:

The Equality Forum is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to advance national and international lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights through education. Since 2006, Equality Forum has spearheaded LGBT History Month. LGBT History Month honors 31 LGBT Icons—one each day—with a video, bio, bibliography, downloadable images, and other downloadable educational resources including special features for students.
They also host the weeklong Annual Equality Forum with an international focus, top-tier panel discussions, parties, an annual art exhibit, International Equality Dinner, Sunday OUT! and more.

The 20th annual Equality Forum's featured nation was Israel.

Some of the special programing about Israel's LGBT population included an exhibit of Israeli photographer David Adika's work at the 13th annual Gay and Lesbian Art Exhibit and the Tel Aviv Drag Performer/Singing Sensation Osher Sabag performing at the Drag Show at Tabu

For many, the highlight of the event was the appearance of Ambassador of Israel to the U.S. Michael Oren as Keynote speaker. From the Globes website:

"Oren mentioned three cases that highlight Israel's liberal attitude toward the LBGT community: two women IDF soldiers who harassed a lesbian soldier were sentence by a military court to prison; and an Israeli diplomat, who received a top posting in Europe, asked and received without further ado full rights for his partner; and the Israeli government did not capitulate to intense pressure from religious parties to cancel the Jerusalem Gay Pride parade, which was held to great success under heavy police protection.

"Our activists have faced many challenges, but they can build on a solid foundation of liberty," said Oren. "Today, Israel's LBGT community is part of the country's diverse and thriving social fabric. Together, we are soldiers, professors, legislators, judges, factory workers, members of the medical professions, and teachers. Together, we are not gays, heterosexuals, bisexuals, or transgenders, but proud Israelis."

Oren added, "In fact, two Palestinian organizations that are fighting for LBGT rights in the West Bank, operate out of Israel because they cannot operate freely in the Palestinian Authority."

Oren said that it is not difficult to be more liberal than Israel's neighbors, adding that Israel must be more advanced not only in the region, but in the world. "We must never cease our efforts to remove the remaining obstacles to total equal rights in Israel. We must ensure that these rights are guaranteed in law, and we must ensure that abuse at school, intolerance by certain religious circles, and public prejudice become unacceptable. Period," he said."

Tel Aviv Named Best Gay City

Now, this is what pinkwashing is all about.

Israel's malicious campaign of pinkwashing--giving LGBT Israelis full civil rights, recognition of foreign marriages, health care for domestic partners, and all that other dreadful imperialist stuff they do...has paid off.

Tel Aviv has been named Best Gay City for 2011.

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Tel Aviv has been named the best gay city for 2011 in a poll sponsored by American Airlines and Gaycities.com.

The city was selected as the "Best City of 2011" in the "Best of Gay Cities 2011" poll. Tel Aviv garnered 43 percent of the votes, followed by New York City with 14 percent and Toronto with 7 percent.

"Winning this competition constitutes an additional strengthening of the fact that Tel Aviv-Jaffa is a city that respects all people and allows everyone to live according to his/her own principles," Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai said. "Ours is a city in which everyone can be proud of who they are."

New York won in the Best Night Life category, San Francisco took the Best Pride city category, and Buffalo, N.Y., was the Most Up-and-Coming city.

More than 5,000 gay tourists visited Tel Aviv in June for its annual pride parade, according to the Tel Aviv-Jaffa municipality.


If you go to Gaycities.com, and look at their map of great gay cities, you're going to notice something, and that's that Tel Aviv stands alone in the Middle East. I mean, entirely alone. That little pin in the map marks the lone gay party town of the region.


Kol ha-kavod, Tel Aviv!