Statement on Palestine
January 21, 2025
This blog post was first published on June 28, 2024 and has been updated to include new insights and resources.
We are deeply disturbed by the ongoing atrocities in Gaza and the immense suffering of the Palestinian people.
The Israeli government is engaged in illegal settler colonialism, human rights violations, and war crimes—actions that are unconscionable and inhumane. This ongoing conflict has deep historical roots, stemming from the forced displacement of Palestinians during the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, an event known as the Nakba (catastrophe) by Palestinians. Since then, the state of Israel’s policies have included:
- The Nakba: The displacement and dispossession of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes and lands during the 1948 war.
- Ongoing occupation: The continued occupation of Palestinian territories, including the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem, in violation of international law.
- Settlements: The illegal construction of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories, further limiting Palestinian self-determination and exacerbating the humanitarian crisis.
- Apartheid: A system of institutionalized discrimination and segregation against Palestinians, including restrictions on movement, access to resources, and political rights.
- Collective punishment: The use of military force and other measures against the entire Palestinian population, including the destruction of infrastructure and the imposition of sieges.
Our government’s failure to hold Israel accountable for these atrocities is unacceptable. Regrettably, the ongoing genocide in Palestine has fueled a rise in Islamophobia and antisemitism within our country.
It has come to our attention that some of our community feels impacted by our previous statements on Palestine. We want to be clear that we are committed to building a world that does not oppose violence with more violence. As an organization, we are firm in our stance for Palestinian liberation and also want to clarify that we strongly oppose antisemitic rhetoric in our communities as well. It’s crucial to distinguish between opposition towards the state of Israel and prejudice against Jewish people. Trans Lifeline actively condemns antisemitism. We know that many Jewish individuals and organizations around the world are vehemently opposed to the crimes committed by the state of Israel and are actively engaged in fighting for the liberation of the Palestinian people alongside us.
We will keep fighting for a world that brings freedom to all oppressed people.
For those seeking a deeper understanding of this issue, we recommend exploring these articles and learning from the valuable insights of these Palestinian and Jewish organizations.
- Palestine is a Queer Issue – XY&Z Magazine
- Queer people organizing in solidarity with Palestine continues to grow – PRISM
- Why Queer Solidarity With Palestine Is Not “Chickens for KFC” – Them
- Criticism of Israel and Antisemitism: How To Tell Where One Ends and the Other Begins – T’ruah
- Criticism of Israel’s war and occupation is not anti-Semitism – Al Jazeera
- The ‘new’ antisemitism conflates criticism of Israel with prejudice against Jews. But it’s complicated – The Conversation
- Black Women Radicals Palestine Reading List
- Palestine in a Nutshell – American Muslims for Palestine
- Jewish Voice for Peace
- IfNotNow