Singing-Sexuality 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.

Feminist and Queer Reflections on the Latest Palestinian Uprising

Wed, 07 Jul 2021 00:00:00 +0200

Over the past few months, Palestinians have been rising up to call for our liberation from all colonial powers. Protests erupted in Jerusalem, Haifa, Yafa, and al-Lidd, along with several areas in the West Bank, as the “Israeli” military continued its aggression and destruction in the Gaza Strip.

In recent weeks, this wave of resistance continued in the protests against the Palestinian Authority following the assassination of political activist Nizar Banat, and later as the PA carried out its suppression and violent assault against protestors.

No Pride Without Dignity

Thu, 24 Jun 2021 00:00:00 +0200

This is the text version of an online resource published by alQaws during pride month in June 2021, following international discussion around queer liberation and Palestine.

Gay Pride started as a riot led by queer and trans Black, Indigenous and People of Color activists in what is now known as the United States in the1960s. These activists rose up against decades of police brutality and persecution and claimed the streets as a site of liberation in the form of protest. The first ‘Pride’ was a riot and it was also an expression of community care and support that queer and trans activists had created as a result of their exclusion from society.

Queer Liberation & Palestine

Wed, 26 May 2021 00:00:00 +0200

Queer Liberation & Palestine

An online resource by alQaws exploring the connections between queer liberation and Palestine in the light of last month’s uprising against Israeli settler colonialism. Queer liberation is fundamentally tied to the dreams of Palestinian liberation.

The struggle for liberation continues. We must continue to take actions, mobilize and engage queer and trans communities in Palestine and globally until we end Israel’s settler colonial project and all forms of oppression.

A Word From Haneen Maikey: A Twenty Year Journey - Gratitude & Acknowledgements

Wed, 10 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0200

This was originally published in our 2020 annual report. Find it here.

A Word From Haneen Maikey

A Twenty Year Journey: Gratitude & Acknowledgements

I write this letter a few weeks after my departure as the Executive Director of alQaws. As my body replaces adrenaline with exhaustion, my heart is filled with deep gratitude for alQaws’ activists, team, and Board of Directors, for the endless opportunities and lessons they’ve offered me until the very last moment. alQaws is where I learned what I know about myself, my community, and Palestine. No matter how hard I try, I won’t be able to do my experience with alQaws justice. How can one reduce twenty years of friendships and activism to a few lines?

A Word From Haneen Sader: Pride and Excitement Amid Significant Change

Wed, 10 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0200

This was originally published in our 2020 annual report. Find it here.

A Word From Haneen Sader

Pride and Excitement Amid Significant Change

It is no easy feat describing the density of certain moments—moments in which thoughts and emotions heighten; moments of monumental change. I write these words during a transformative period societally, organizationally at alQaws, and in my personal life. After studying computer engineering and working at different technology companies for the past decade, I’ve decided to take a new career path. This choice came from my five-year activist experience at alQaws, which has influenced me in the most meaningful of ways.

No Queer “Co-Resistance” with Colonizers: Confronting Normalization and Pinkwashing

Thu, 10 Dec 2020 00:00:00 +0200

Today, a virtual seminar, titled “Decolonizing Queerness: Towards A Palestinian-Israeli Co-Resistance,” was held to promote the work of Palestinian academic Sa’ed Atshan. Organizied by an Israeli researcher, the event was framed as a discussion about “the reality and the dilemmas that queer Palestinian organizations […] are facing.” The webinar was promoted on Facebook, primarily in English and Hebrew, using vague, general descriptions. It featured one Arabic sentence: a translation of the title. The description noted that the event was “not funded, sponsored by, or connected to any institution or group,” which may have served as a loophole to escape the normalization guidelines put in place by the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment, & Sanctions movement (BDS).

Beyond Propaganda: Pinkwashing as Colonial Violence

Sun, 18 Oct 2020 00:00:00 +0200

This analysis paper explores a paradigm shift that alQaws has been exploring over the past decade of its grassroots community organizing, which centers the experiences of queer Palestinians.

To discuss what this shift means for queer Palestinian solidarity movements, join our community conversation “Beyond Propaganda: Reorienting Anti-Pinkwashing Organizing” with alQaws and Adallah Justice Project, Thursday October 22nd at 1PM ET / 10AM PT / 8PM Palestine time.

Over a decade ago, Palestinian activists adopted the term “pinkwashing” to describe how the Israeli state and its supporters use the language of gay and trans rights to direct international attention away from the oppression of Palestinians. Israeli travel guides and promotional videos advertise Tel Aviv beaches as a gay-friendly getaway destination—and hide the reality that tourist partygoers are dancing atop the ruins of ethnically cleansed Palestinian villages. The open inclusion of gay officers in the Israeli occupation army is used as proof of liberal forward-mindedness, but for Palestinians the sexuality of the soldier at a checkpoint makes little difference. They all wield the same guns, wear the same boots, and maintain the same colonial regime.

AlQaws response to the PA police statment

Sun, 18 Aug 2019 00:00:00 +0200

Last night (Saturday, August 17th), the spokesperson for the Palestinian Authority police, Louai Irzeqat, issued a statement concerning alQaws' activities in the West Bank. This first-ever statement about alQaws declared that the PA police would prohibit any event organized or held by alQaws for Gender and Sexual Diversity in Palestinian Society. The police claimed it goes against “traditional Palestinian values” accusing us as “foreign agents.” The statement went further, calling on citizens to complain about any “suspicious” activities and for the persecution of alQaws staff and activists.

Why We Should Boycott Gay Pride in Tel Aviv

Wed, 14 Jun 2017 00:00:00 +0200

I am a queer Palestinian who has been working tirelessly over the last decade for sexual and gender diversity, as well as LGBTQI visibility in Palestinian society. And I am committed to fighting for justice for all people. So why am I calling for an international boycott of Gay Pride in Tel Aviv this June?

Gay Pride in Tel Aviv is heavily sponsored by the Israeli government and is cynically deployed to divert attention from the occupation of Palestinian lands and the daily violation of Palestinian rights.

July Hawamesh: Violence Against Queer Bodies, Local and Global Perspectives

Mon, 04 Jul 2016 00:00:00 +0200

The July Hawamesh (“on the margins”) meeting will explore aspects of violence against LGBTQ persons and communities from global and local perspectives, through analysis of the Palestinian societal discourse, the forms, manifestations, and projections of violence, and the different ways local Palestinian LGBTQ communities, and society in general, deal with and discuss it.

Monday, July 11, 2016 @ 19:00 in alMahatta, Haifa

For the Facebook event, click here (Arabic Only).

April Hawamesh Session: Models of Masculinity in Palestinian Cinema

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

Wednesday, April 6th, at 7pm, Al-Mahatta, Haifa

The upcoming Hawamesh will focus on presenting various perceptions of masculinity in Palestinian cinema. The meeting will offer some analysis of models of men and masculinity in Palestinian film, as well as the influence of political events on these perceptions. Salah Dabah, a Palestinian cinema researcher, will lead the discussion with examples from Palestinian film. He will offer an overview of the ways in which masculinity is reflected in Palestinian cinema, discuss cinematic methods of reinforcing masculinity on screen, and present alternative cinematography seeking to challenge mainstream conceptions of masculinity.

For the Facebook event, click here (Arabic Only).

“Hawamesh” (which means "margins" in Arabic), is a Haifa-based bi-monthly discussion forum about issues related to sexual and gender diversity in Palestinian society. Hawamesh aims to fill a void in the mainstream discourse - including the rhetoric of local queer organizing and sexuality activism - in order to disrupt and broaden its domain. In addition Hawamesh aims to reframe topics that were traditionally considered internal discussions exclusive to the LGBT community into a broader, more connected, and more relevant social and political context.

New Hawamesh Meeting “The Attack on LGBTs in Palestine: A Crises in Discourse, Or a Culture of Exclusion”

Fri, 25 Sep 2015 00:00:00 +0200

The upcoming Hawamesh is going to focus on the latest attack on LGBTs and homosexuality in Palestine which took place last June (Islamic movement leader statement against gay marriage, attack on LGBT rights supporters, rainbow drawing on the Apartheid Wall and more), and the unprecedented public discussion among civil society organizations, political parties, social movements, alongside the heated debates on social media. (Read here the support statement signed by 15 civil society organizations that was initiated by alQaws and allies. Arabic only).

First Hawamesh Event in 2015 - Wednesday February 3rd @ 19:00

Mon, 26 Jan 2015 00:00:00 +0200

First Hawamesh Event in 2015 - Tuesday February 3rd @ 19:00
Our inaugural Hawamesh event for 2015 will take place on Tuesday, February 3rd at alQaws office in Haifa.

Entitled “Do Local Anti-Pinkwashing Discourses Perpetuate Structures of ‘Homophobia’ by Presenting a Misleading Facade of Queer Realities in Palestine?”, the event will follow up on recent community conversations raising serious questions about the potential impact and unintended consequences of efforts and strategies to expose Israel’s use of gay rights to mask systematic disregard and violation of the human rights of Palestinians.

“Hawamesh” - Monthly discussion forum about issues related to sexual and gender diversity in Palestinian society

Mon, 29 Dec 2014 00:00:00 +0200

“Hawamesh” is an important project successfully developed and established by alQaws in Haifa in 2014. “Hawamesh” (which means "margins" in Arabic), is a Haifa-based monthly discussion forum about issues related to sexual and gender diversity in Palestinian society. Hawamesh aims to fill a void in the mainstream discourse - including the rhetoric of local queer organizing and sexuality activism - in order to disrupt and broaden its domain.
Hawamesh successfully organized eight intellectual discussion forums, reaching over 150 activists and academics, as well as others interested in broadening their knowledge relating to sexual and gender diversity. Hawamesh gatherings generally took place at alQaws’ Haifa office, although Hawamesh sessions were also organized in collaboration with Almahata, the Palestinian Youth Cooperative in Haifa.
Some topics addressed in Hawamesh sessions included:

Queer Literature in Arabic and Palestinian Literary Texts

Mon, 27 Oct 2014 00:00:00 +0200

Queer Literature in Arabic and Palestinian Literary Texts, is the title of the new "Hawamesh" event, hosted by Almahata – Palestinian Youth Cooperative in Haifa. "Hawamesh" is honored to host a special poetry book launch by our friend Housni Shehada, "Sharqi el Monada," in an evening of poetry readings and discussions about queer literature.

The discussion will take place on Thursday, 30th of October 2014 at 19:00 at Almahata, 55 Yaffa Street, Haifa.
“Hawamesh” (Arabic for ‘Margins’) – alQaws’ Haifa based monthly discussion forum about issues related to sexual and gender diversity in Palestinian society addresses a diverse array of issues related to sexuality and gender while giving a public space to activists and those interested to take part in a vibrant and open dialogue.

To Facebook event

alQaws Statement re: media response to Israel's blackmailing of gay Palestinians

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

We write in response to a couple of articles published in the past week in western media, such as "Israel surveils and blackmails gay Palestinians to make them informants" (Mondoweiss),or Corey Robin’s recent post, "Forget Pinkwashing; Israel Has a Lavender Scare." Both pieces were written in response to the recent spate of articles, like the ones published in The New York Times and The Guardian, detailing IDF Unit 8200 veterans’ refusal of reserve duty due to their rejection of Israel’s surveillance and blackmail of Palestinians. We are concerned by the way that these responses single out sexuality in general, and homosexuality in particular, as the main and most troubling aspect of Israeli intelligence and surveillance recruitment practices. Although the responses cite many different vulnerabilities Palestinians face—including lack of medical care—that Israeli “security” forces exploit in order to recruit Palestinian informants, these articles neglect these equally significant vulnerabilities and zero in on (homo)sexuality.

Eight questions Palestinian queers are tired of hearing

Wed, 27 Nov 2013 00:00:00 +0200

You might think that the main goal of a group of queer activists in Palestine like us in Al-Qaws should be the seemingly endless task of dismantling sexual and gender hierarchy in one’s own society.

It is. But you might think otherwise, judging from the repetitive questions we get during our lectures and events, or from inquiries we receive from media and other international organizations.

We intend to end this once and for all. Educating people about their own privilege is not our burden. But before we announce our formal retirement from this task, here are the eight most frequent questions we get, and their definitive answers.

al-Qaseda ashirra (The evil poem)