LGBTQIA+ Activism in Palestine

The Palestinian independent researcher and activist Adam Haj Yahia has been involved in grassroots organizing and community building initiatives, concerned with feminist, queer, and anti-colonial movements and communities in Palestine. In recent years, LGBTQIA+ issues have been increasingly discussed in mainstream media and society, leading to an acceleration in change and a shift in dynamics. In his research, Adam looks at how LGBTQIA+ Palestinians navigate through online platforms since then, and which parts of their identities and views they choose to disclose for anti-colonial, political, and social reasons. For this event, Adam will gives insight into the political and colonial frameworks in Palestine and how they intersect with LGBTQIA+ folks' lives and queer issues. We will also learn about the ways in which queer politics in the Palestinian context differ from the more liberal/individualistic ones in western societies and how it is crucial to discuss these politics through an intersectional lens. 00:00 Start video 00:01:30 Introduction 00:06:50 Geopolitical, social and cultural framework 00:21:00 The Palestinian Queer Movement 00:43:11 How has the intersectional approach of Palestinian Queer movement been received by the wider Palestinian liberation activism networks? 00:47:02 What is the relationship between the queer liberation movement and the Palestinian Authority (including potential repression faces by these)? 00:52:10 Does the queer liberation movement resonate with people in Israel too? 00:55:33 Could you also introduce a bit more about some specific practices of the queer movement? You mentioned protests, if there are any other ways of activism happening? Especially anything that’s more specific to the Palestinian context? 00:58:27 How do you think movements in the West for Palestinian liberation and for queer liberation can better support the Palestinian queer liberation movement/ combat pinkwashing and Israeli colonization? 01:01:00 When faced with external pressure to choose between identifying as Palestinian and identifying as LGBTQIA+, how do activists navigate understanding their identity? 01:09:14 How has the intersectional queer movement been received by other authority structures and institutions (religious, political) within Palestine?