Pro-Gay and Anti-Israel? Pinkwashing to the Rescue
March 25, 2013
By Cinnamon Stillwell and Reut R. Cohen
Whats a pro-gay, anti-Israel activist to do when faced with the fact that the Jewish state is the only nation in the Middle East in which not only is it illegal to discriminate against homosexuality, but where homosexuality is celebrated with an annual gay pride parade? To such activists, the answer is obvious: invent a bogus theory called pinkwashing that accuses Israel of touting gay rights in order to downplay its alleged oppression of the Palestinians.
The University of California, Los Angeless Center for Near Eastern Studies recently jumped into the fray with a lecture comically titled, Pinkwashing: Gay Rights and Queer [sic] Indigeneities (the term indigeneities, an invented piece of academic jargon, is derived from indigenous). In a sparsely attended presentation rife with post-colonialist rhetoric, Nada Elia, a professor of gender and global studies at Antioch University in Seattle and a member of the organizing committee of the U.S. Campaign for the Academic & Cultural Boycott of Israel (USACBI), attempted to align her support for Palestinian queer activism with her devotion to all things anti-Israel.
...
No audience member asked an obvious question: In light of Israels purported settler-colonialism and pinkwashing and the discrimination gay Palestinians face in their own society, what are the alternatives? Had they done so, Elia might have elaborated on her utopian proposal, outlined in the lectures announcement, for a queer state, which allows individual citizens to define themselves as they wish, without losing power, entitlement, or safety. Given the reaction that a Jewish state has elicited in the region, one can only imagine how a queer state would be received. Yet Elia and her fellow travelers prefer a fictional queer state to an actual country where gays are welcomeda sure sign that, for them, bigotry trumps reality.
NB: If you wish to make your views known to University of California, Los Angeles Chancellor Gene Block, he can be reached at:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 310-825-2151
Fax: 310-206-6030
The office of Antioch University Seattle President Cassandra Manuelito-Kerkvliet may be contacted at:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 206-268-4105
Pro-Gay and Anti-Israel? ?Pinkwashing? to the Rescue
March 25, 2013
By Cinnamon Stillwell and Reut R. Cohen
Whats a pro-gay, anti-Israel activist to do when faced with the fact that the Jewish state is the only nation in the Middle East in which not only is it illegal to discriminate against homosexuality, but where homosexuality is celebrated with an annual gay pride parade? To such activists, the answer is obvious: invent a bogus theory called pinkwashing that accuses Israel of touting gay rights in order to downplay its alleged oppression of the Palestinians.
The University of California, Los Angeless Center for Near Eastern Studies recently jumped into the fray with a lecture comically titled, Pinkwashing: Gay Rights and Queer [sic] Indigeneities (the term indigeneities, an invented piece of academic jargon, is derived from indigenous). In a sparsely attended presentation rife with post-colonialist rhetoric, Nada Elia, a professor of gender and global studies at Antioch University in Seattle and a member of the organizing committee of the U.S. Campaign for the Academic & Cultural Boycott of Israel (USACBI), attempted to align her support for Palestinian queer activism with her devotion to all things anti-Israel.
...
No audience member asked an obvious question: In light of Israels purported settler-colonialism and pinkwashing and the discrimination gay Palestinians face in their own society, what are the alternatives? Had they done so, Elia might have elaborated on her utopian proposal, outlined in the lectures announcement, for a queer state, which allows individual citizens to define themselves as they wish, without losing power, entitlement, or safety. Given the reaction that a Jewish state has elicited in the region, one can only imagine how a queer state would be received. Yet Elia and her fellow travelers prefer a fictional queer state to an actual country where gays are welcomeda sure sign that, for them, bigotry trumps reality.
NB: If you wish to make your views known to University of California, Los Angeles Chancellor Gene Block, he can be reached at:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 310-825-2151
Fax: 310-206-6030
The office of Antioch University Seattle President Cassandra Manuelito-Kerkvliet may be contacted at:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 206-268-4105
Pro-Gay and Anti-Israel? ?Pinkwashing? to the Rescue
