Palestinian Visibility and Activism: The Plight of Queer Palestinians under Occupation and Homophobia

Queer Palestinian representation has become an essential discussion in spaces concerning Palestinian liberation. While queer Palestinians participate and advocate for Palestinian sovereignty, it was not until the past two decades anthropologists paid attention to the influence and dynamics of queer centered organisations. Scholars have contributed significantly to Palestinian queer organisations’ activism through the context of global politics, yet the independent queer Palestinian experience requires more exploration to fully contextualise Queer Palestine. The objective of this paper is to highlight the concealed element of the queer Palestinian experience and explicate why Queer Palestinian rights are essential to Palestinian sovereignty. The research methods focus on two elements: the textual analysis of recent publications centralised around Queer Palestinian activism and social behavior within the context of visibility and state propaganda. Specifically, the political influence and challenges of Queer Palestinian organisations, and their development in political approach and the challenges of ethnoheteronormativity and the difference in visibility between queer Israelis and Palestinians. Second, interviews with queer volunteers, that shall remain anonymous, who graciously provided an insider perspective on the individual experience of queer Palestinians through first-hand observation.