Sexual orientation and gay rights in relation to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was not something that I had considered before. Looking through the different website, from both The Jerusalem Open House (JOH) and AlQaws, I tried to get a feel for their environments and beliefs. (I also viewed the movie trailer for the documentary “City of Borders.” I would have liked to have watched it before tomorrow but I can’t find it on Netflix or other places on online. ) I could be wrong, but while both of them discussed tolerance and human rights, they each seemed to be more focused towards their own group. While the JOH did have its title in Arabic, videos and other media were in mostly Hebrew or English. AlQaws seemed mainly focused on Palestinians and Arabs. I understand, however, that fighting for gay rights is a struggle in itself, but I wonder if these two organizations work together on some of the same initiatives? Was AlQaws included in the march to the Knesset in 2010? I could not find solid information telling me either way. On the AlQaws website it says this organization rejects “all forms of oppression in its various manifestations, whether these be patriarchal, economic, nationalistic or ethnic…”. That being said, I want to know more about their role in rejected the hatred on both sides.
On the JOH blog, the author of one of the entries put a link to pictures of the rally. One of the men held up a picture of Jerusalem with a message that said “Tolerance is Holy”. While I agree with this statement, it reminded me of something we had heard before. I cannot remember if it was said in a video conference or if I heard it from the documentary “Knowledge is the Beginning,” but the notion of only being tolerant rubs me the wrong way. Someone mentioned this idea and I agree with their idea. What is truly holy is acceptance, not only tolerance. Everyone discusses tolerance, and while I believe it is important to be tolerant in order to be accepting, tolerance should not be the end goal to any struggle, rather acceptance. Tolerance means you can stand to be in the presence of someone or some idea one does not agree with, and that is not enough. To truly have peace (just to throw around that word some more), we need to fully understand each other- and being tolerant is only understanding the surface of someone.
Questions for Elinor:
1. What do you identify with more? Your sexual orientation or your ethnicity?
2. Can the fight for gay rights and the fight for ethnic rights go hand in hand? Do they contradict each other? Does being part of the LGBT make someone more prone to ethnic tolerance/acceptance or are most people still linked to their respective groups?
3. What is your personal role in the “peace” process?
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