International-Lectures on Al-Qaws

Jerusalem: A Queer and Feminist Reading of the City

Mon, 25 Oct 2021 00:00:00 +0200

alQaws for Sexual and Gender Diversity in Palestinian Society is pleased to invite you to its third Hawamesh forum this year, “Jerusalem: A Queer and Feminist Reading of the City,” on Monday 25 October 2021 at 6:00 PM at Yabus Cultural Center (Marakech Hall).

“Hawamesh” (margins) is an intellectual and cultural forum that aims to bring social and political discussions around gender and sexuality from the margins to the center of Palestinian discourse, challenging their marginalisation and emphasising their relevance to all members of society. Hawamesh is also an opportunity to bring alQaws and alQaws activists into closer contact and direct communication with larger circles in the local community.

alQaws Holds Study Day with Palestinian Counseling Center

Mon, 12 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0200

On 6 April 2021, alQaws held a study day with the Palestinian Counceling Center (PCC) to discuss and launch “The Interaction of Palestinian Families with Diverse Gender and Sexual Experiences” alQaws’ most recent field study.

The day commenced with opening statements from both organizations. Haneen Sader, alQaws Director, applauded the partnership with PCC and valued their professionality, in spite of facing violence and incitement in the 2 weeks prior to the event. Khaled Obeidat from PCC emphasized the importance of this step in line with the center’s vision and objectives. The main session, streamed live on alQaws Facebook page, brought together experts and scholars to discuss the different aspects of the study. Haneen Maikey, former Director of alQaws and one of the research authors, gave an overview of the research process and its context.

[Webinar] Beyond Propaganda: Reorienting Anti-Pinwashing Organizing

Wed, 14 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0200

In this community conversation between alQaws and Adalah Justice Project, on the occasion of alQaws’ launch of a new resource on pinkwashing, we’ll be discussing the work of the Palestinian queer movement, how to reorient our understanding of pinkwashing, and the future of collective organizing towards the free Palestine we dream.

Over a decade ago, activists adopted the term “pinkwashing” to describe the Israeli propaganda tactic of ‘washing away’ the oppression of Palestinians by painting Israel as a gay-friendly and liberal state. Israeli pinkwashing tries to win the hearts and minds of international audiences and prevent solidarity with the Palestinian struggle, so the early years of anti-pinkwashing activism focused on fighting against Israeli state propaganda with campaigns, protests, and academic forums. Activists worked to expose the contradiction at the heart of pinkwashing: it’s impossible for a violent colonial regime to also be a “progressive” state.

Queer Discussions in the Region: Media, Authority and Society

Tue, 02 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0200

Over the past year, we witnessed many incidents and events related to sexual and gender diversity issues take center stage in public debate in the region; from the statement of the Palestinian Police in August 2019 banning and actively inciting against aQaws’ work; to public debate over queer issues in the Lebanese revolution since last October; to the outing campaign and violent incidents against queer folks in Morocco recently, and many other debates and events that widely stirred public opinion.

The Queer Arabs Podcast Interviews alQaws

Sat, 25 Apr 2020 00:00:00 +0200

This podcast was originally released on The Queer Arabs Podcast website. Listen to it here.

We were thrilled to be joined by Haneen Maikey and Izzy Mustafa from alQaws for Sexual & Gender Diversity in Palestinian Society! We discussed building a politically queer grassroots movement in Palestine, connecting to queer Palestinians in diaspora, confronting Pinkwashing (a tactic of normalizing Israeli hegemony through images of queer-friendliness) both internationally and within Palestinian society, and the place of artistic expression in this movement.

[VIDEO] Pandemic Challenges: Queer and Feminist Perspectives in the Region

Thu, 16 Apr 2020 00:00:00 +0200

On Wednesday, 15th of May, 2020, alQaws hosted an open webinar titled “Pandemic Challenges: Queer and Feminist Perspectives in the Region”. Four Arab institutions that work on sexual and gender diversity and sexuality in general participated.

The meeting came as an opportunity among alQaws' attempts to adjust its work to the new situation due to the coronavirus pandemic. These attempts include communicating with the public, and even growing it to include different Arab countries. In addition, the meeting constituted an opportunity for a deeper cooperation between ally institutions, and a space to share our experiences and challenges.

Pandemic Challenges: Queer and Feminist Perspectives in the Region

Wed, 15 Apr 2020 00:00:00 +0200

There is no doubt that the coronavirus pandemic has created various questions and challenges in the face of LGBTQ individuals and other marginalized groups in the society. As a result, this in its turn creates specific challenges for the groups and organizations that are active on gender and sexual diversity issues.

Therefore, as a way of acknowledging the complex situation, and recognizing our political and intellectual responsibility to share our experiences and expertise, we are delighted to invite you to a virtual meeting that deals with the political and professional challenges of the pandemic, and especially those that face the feminist and queer organizations and groups. The meeting will tackle many subjects such as the pandemic’s impact on LGBTQ people and other marginalized groups; the state’s intensified exploitation of the current crisis to regulate our bodies and sexuality; and the continuation of our work as queer and feminist organizations and groups, among others.

Tarwiha Comic Book Release and Discussion in Jerusalem

Wed, 12 Dec 2018 00:00:00 +0200

alQaws organized an open discussion event today in Jerusalem addressing sexual and gender diversity issues in schools, where we released our recently launched Tarwiha* comic book.

The discussion highlighted the experiences of LGBTQ/queer people in school, exploring Tarwiha both artistically and as an educational platform for bringing these issues to light.

The event started with a queer reading and artistic critique of the comic series, followed by commentary from an education specialist. A conversation then ensued about gender-based violence and alQaws’ field perspective addressing it in recent years.

Haneen Maikey Talks to Astraea Foundation about alQaws' Work

Thu, 01 Mar 2018 00:00:00 +0200

(Originally published on Astraea's website here)

alQaws, founded in 2007, is the leading Palestinian LGBTQ organization working directly with Palestinian civil society to create a sustainable, persistent, community-based social change movement.

In the above video, founder Haneen Maikey discusses the organization’s work and what it’s meant to receive support from Astraea.

Learn more about alQaws.

Join us to support organizations like alQaws who are leading transformative movements for social change in their communities in the U.S. and around the world!

2nd alQaws Study Day for Palestinian Psychologists and Therapists Held in Nazareth

Sat, 02 Apr 2016 00:00:00 +0200

On March 18th, alQaws and the Arab Psychological Association conducted a second Study Day on “Sexual and Gender Dimensions in Therapy.” This year's program explored the particularities of LGBTQ experiences in Palestinian society, how these experiences are shaped through personal, familial and social interactions, as well as how these experiences are reflected in therapy and by therapists. Several lectures and workshops conducted throughout the day aimed to shed the light on the personal attitudes and knowledge of these issues among Palestinian therapists and the impact on therapy.

The event, which took place in Nazareth, was attended by dozens health sector professionals, therapists, and educational counselors from all over Palestine.

These periodic study days are an advocacy project of alQaws’ Therapists Advocacy Group and part of a broader initiative to engage Palestinian therapists and psychologists on issues related to sexuality, sexual identity/orientation and gender, as well as their differing dimensions and impacts in the therapeutic context.

Queer/Anti-Colonial Struggle from the US to Palestine

Tue, 02 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

Evening of solidarity, art, politics, and community, featuring alQaws director Haneen Maikey and Audre Lorde project director, Cara Page.

A talk by Haneen Maikey from alQaws, the Queer Palestinian Activist Collective followed by US based activists Cara Page and Che Gossett to learn more about Queer Freedom Organizing Outside of Racist and Colonial Logics.

Panel featuring:
Haneen Maikey (al Qaws, Palestine)
Cara Page (Audre Lorde Project, NYC)
Che Gossett (Barnard Center for Research on Women, NYC)
Moderated by Malcolm Shanks

Queer Anti-Colonial Struggle: From The US To Palestine

Tue, 18 Nov 2014 00:00:00 +0200

Monday, November 24th at 7:30 pm

14 FL | 224 West 29th Street
New York City

alQaws friends and the Darkmatter will be hosting an evening of solidarity, art, politics, and community, featuring alQaws director Haneen Maikey and Audre Lorde project director, Cara Page.

Join us to hear a talk by Haneen Maikey from alQaws, the Queer Palestinian Activist Collective followed by US based activists Cara Page and Che Gossett to learn more about Queer Freedom Organizing Outside of Racist and Colonial Logics.

Facebook Event

Don’t single out (homo)sexuality in response to Israel blackmail revelations, Palestinians say

Fri, 19 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0200

Last week, 43 reservists affiliated with the Israeli army’s “Unit 8200” – an electronic espionage operation – issued a public letter decrying Israel’s latest attack on Gaza and which states that they would not take part in Israel’s oppression of millions of Palestinians living under occupation.

What generated particular outrage was the letter-writers’ revelation that Unit 8200 eavesdrops on Palestinians in order to use personal information to coerce them into collaboration with Israel.

Finding a safe space for Palestinian queer activism

Thu, 17 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0200

JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- In 2008, Laila was a recent college graduate and committed anti-occupation activist in her hometown of Nablus. But there was one issue her groups could not adequately address: her sexuality.

“I started testing the waters, looking at what organizations are out there, what’s the discourse,” said Laila last month in Nablus.

She researched the Haifa-based lesbian group Aswat, but that organization is more attentive to Palestinians within Israel and inaccessible to West Bank residents like Laila.

Liberation in Palestine, A Queer Issue - Haneen Maikey

Fri, 28 Feb 2014 00:00:00 +0200

Haneen Maikey's talk for LGBT History Month and Israeli Apartheid Week.

Rabih Alameddine and Haneen Maikey - Keynote from the Homonationalism and Pinkwashing Conference

Fri, 19 Jul 2013 00:00:00 +0200

Rabih Alameddine's and Haneen Maikey's keynotes from CLAGS' conference Homonationalism and Pinkwashing at The Graduate Center, CUNY, New York City, April 10-11, 2013.

For more information about the conference, see the conference website: http://www.homonationalism.org. For more information about CLAGS, see our website: http://www.clags.org.

Rabih Alameddine is a painter and novelist and author of Kool Aids: the Art of War (1998) a novel about an HIV positive gay man written against the backdrop of the Lebanese Civil War. Other fiction include The Perv (1999), I, The Divine (2001), The Hakawati (2008). A Guggenheim Fellow, his books are widely read in English, French and Arabic, especially in his naive Lebanon. Amy Tan called him "a writer of conscience, of self-consciousness, of subconsciouness, of the great big global unconscious. Within his stories are provocative ideas, housed in fractured narratives, splendid images, daring language—and simply great storytelling. What some might call disjointed narratives, I think of as the way our perceptions of time and space actually unfurl themselves: not linearly, but in a revelatory sense." Read more about Rabih Alameddine on his website: http://rabihalameddine.com/

Though small, Palestine’s queer movement has big vision

Fri, 12 Jul 2013 00:00:00 +0200

Although quite young and small, the Palestinian queer movement is far from homogeneous. It includes numerous groups of diverse, dynamic and nimble activists who, within the framework of the wider social justice and national liberation struggle, seek to raise awareness about issues considered taboo in their society.

There were no documented or known gay, lesbian or transgender groups in Palestine before the second intifada.

That changed in 2001, when Palestinian queers from the occupied West Bank and present-day Israel started to convene in the Jerusalem Open House, an Israeli initiative that primarily offered Palestinians a space for expression and interaction, and served as an umbrella organization in terms of securing funds and international outreach. The following year, the group Aswat: Palestinian Gay Women was founded as part of an independent project within the Palestinian feminist organization Kayan in Haifa.

Multimedia Project Tackles LGBT Rights in Palestine

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:00:00 +0200

JERUSALEM, May 24 2013 (IPS) - Public discussions about sexuality and gender diversity are difficult to start in many places. But a new multimedia project that is garnering buzz in Palestine aims to reverse this trend and open up dialogue within Palestinian society around these historically taboo issues.

“We want to start an honest conversation that can also raise…limitations and tough questions,” explained Haneen Maikey, director of the Jerusalem-based Al Qaws Centre for Sexual and Gender Diversity in Palestinian society. “It’s not to be accepted, but rather to bring the society to a safe place that we can discuss these issues.”

Queer Politics & Haneen Maikey

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0200

The Paper spoke with Haneen Maikey, Director of Al-Qaws for Sexual & Gender Diversity in Palestinian Society, a Palestinian grassroots queer political organisation working throughout Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. At a time when Israeli, U.S., and E.U. mainstream media groups publish stories about the presence of homosexuals in order to indicate economic growth, the process of strategizing how to mobilise queer politics outside the “homonationalism” sphere poses a daunting challenge. How do queer Palestinians, themselves under the perpetual threat of colonial oppression and violence, organise themselves and navigate a route by which they can engage with tactics of grouping and visibility, but in way that is necessarily distinct from traditional “gay-rights” approaches? Maikey, a Palestinian citizen of Jerusalem, discussed some of the ways these challenges are played out in the daily operations of Al-Qaws.

Palestinian Queer politics and the Israeli Occupation

Sat, 19 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Palestinian Queer politics and the Israeli Occupation
By: Haneen Maikey

Resisting homophobia and occupation

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Haneen Maikey from the Palestinian queer group Al Qaws was in Amsterdam in June talking about their struggles for sexual emancipation and against the Israeli occupation. Alex de Jong spoke with her about being queer and Palestinan and the queer contribution to the Palestinian liberation movement for the Dutch newspaper Grenzeloos.

HM: I’m here to share my experience as a Palestinian queer activist. As a movement, we are often marginalized in the media – if somebody writes about queers in Palestine, it’s often dismissive about what we have to say ourselves. Instead, the focus is on our supposed victim-hood, not on our accomplishments. That is one of the reasons we feel its important to talk about our experiences in meetings like this one or a recent speaking tour I did in the United States. Al Qaws is a queer and LGBT grassroots group that focuses on answering people’s individual needs and creating a community where people can freely acknowledge all their identities, without having to choose between for example being queer or being Palestinian. For us, this is part of a larger vision of challenging and breaking the current sexual and gender hierarchies in Palestinian society.’

Palestinian queer activists challenge the ‘pinkwashing’ of the Israeli occupation

Wed, 16 Feb 2011 00:00:00 +0200

On February 16th, 2011 I attended a public forum entitled “Palestinian Queer Activists Talk Politics” in San Francisco’s Mission District. More than 20 groups including the National Center for Lesbian Rights, Jewish Voice for Peace and the Middle East Children’s Alliance sponsored the forum, moderated by lesbian Chicana activist and writer Cherríe Moraga. The discussion featured three speakers:

- Abeer Mansour works for Aswat, a feminist queer Palestinian women’s group dedicating to “generat[ing] social change in order to meet the needs of one of the most silenced and oppressed communities in Israel.

'Stop using Palestinian gays to whitewash Israel's image'

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0200

At the recent 'Gay Olympics' - the World Outgames in Copenhagen, Denmark - Tel Aviv was crowned one of the exclusive gay capitals of the world and proudly celebrated by the Israeli ambassador in Denmark.

Five days later, a still unidentified gunman killed two people and wounded a dozen more in a gay drop-in center in that very same Tel Aviv.

The attack was followed by a myriad of articles on the homophobia haunting Israel and a Haaretz poll showing that nearly half of the Israeli population believes homosexuality is a perversion.