A future where all 2SLGBTQ+ people have the safety to thrive requires a liberated Palestine
Along with the world, our staff has watched in horror as the decades-old battle over land and sovereignty has escalated in violence, resulting in a growing death toll in and around Gaza throughout October 2023. Several of our staff members have given our time, energy, platforms, and skills to organizing responses that attempt to get much-needed humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, more than half of whom are children.
Many people want to try to shift a conversation about what is happening in Gaza to religious intolerance or hatred, but we know that rhetoric only serves to drive up rates of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. This is not a war or a conflict. It is a genocide. The Palestinian people, including civilians, a majority of whom are children, and media based in Gaza, are being systematically killed, disabled, and unhoused by the Israeli government.
Some folks might ask why we, an organization whose focus is largely on 2SLGBTQ+ folks in Oklahoma, would take what might be perceived as a political risk and make a statement about Palestine. We know what it is to have genocide targeting your community glossed over as “not your issue,” or to have the talking points remain fixed on religious dichotomies when there is a vibrant range of people impacted by the harm being wielded by those in power. We’re experiencing the stages of genocide targeting Two Spirit, transgender, and gender nonconforming+ folks unfold in real-time in Oklahoma. And what we’re seeing in Gaza is genocide, too. We will not watch on silently as our state and our country actively support the further murder of Palestinian people, and others trapped in the living prison that is Gaza. 2SLGBTQ+ liberation requires Palestinian liberation.
We are grateful for the Palestinian people, those trapped in Gaza, and those part of a forced diaspora around the world, for stating firmly and loudly how we can amplify calls to action. We are heartbroken by the messages from queer and trans Palestinians we have seen, in response to pinkwashing, the tactic of using the lack of protections or rights for LGBTQ+ folks in a country as an excuse to condone violence, even as they’re seeing their community killed by the ongoing assault from Israel. We are grateful for Jewish anti-Zionists raising their voices to call for a ceasefire and an end to the occupation of Palestinian land, working in solidarity alongside Palestinians in this fight for liberation. Over the weekend of October 28, 2023 in NYC, we saw tactics mirroring ACT-UP NY’s 1991 Day of Desperation, both actions shutting down Grand Central Station, each with around 300 people putting their bodies on the line to be arrested in pursuit of justice. We’re grateful to all the generations of solidarity and organizing that have gotten us to this moment.
In our values statements, we have named that we are willing to forsake popularity to avoid compromising on behalf of 2SLGBTQ+ community members, especially those most historically (and presently) targeted, marginalized, and excluded. And we know that while there is an unprecedented amount of support being voiced for Palestinian liberation, powerbrokers, funders, and folks who have comfort in the status quo are largely still working to uphold a Zionist state at the expense of Palestinian lives. To build a future where all 2SLGBTQ+ people have the safety to thrive, in and beyond Oklahoma, Palestine must be free. We oppose oppression, colonization, and displacement of people in every form. Our liberation is bound together. And it is our duty to organize in solidarity towards that future. Audre Lorde wrote, “Tomorrow belongs to those of us who conceive of it as belonging to everyone; who lend the best of ourselves to it, and with joy.” There are 2SLGBTQ+ Palestinians in the future. There are 2SLGBTQ+ Jewish people in the future. There are 2SLGBTQ+ Oklahomans in the future. Because we have always been and will always be here. And it is our duty to liberate one another. Together, we’ll get free.
For more information about actions in response to the ongoing genocide in Palestine, ways you can plug into actions, and broader information about direct action and your rights when protesting, here are a few resources:
Palestine Legal - Know Your Rights
Worldwide Calendar of Resistance for Palestine Events
Mental Health Resources for Palestinians