GLBT in Jerusalem

Most of my thoughts about Israel and Jerusalem are overshadowed by the occupation. When I think of Israel, I think about the conflict. For the first time while exploring these websites I started to think about the GLBT communities in Israel and Palestine. I've never considered homosexuality in relation to Judaism. I have never considered what it must be like to be homosexual in the Middle East. In an interview, Yonatan Gher, director general of the Jerusalem Open House, remarked that the Knesset sanctions 700 forms of discrimination against the GLBT community. In this same interview, Liel Kyzer asks the director general many questions that I would like to ask Elinor during our video conference. Some of these questions include: What is it like to be GLBT in a religiously orthodox city? How do Israelis respond to the GLBT community? How do Palestinians react to the GLBT community? What are some of these 700 sanctioned discriminatory acts?
Heteronormativity and patriarchy must be substantial barriers to break in the city of Jerusalem. Heteronormativity and patriarchy seemed ingrained into all monotheistic religions. People who discriminate against people based on their sexual orientation are often religiously devout. For example, most fundamentalist Christians think that homosexuality is a sin. At their core the GLBT community and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict face the same problem. The problem is one of recognition. By refusing to accept their sexual orientation, many people in power deny the rights of members of the GLBT community. This same refusal to recognize the other propagates intolerance amongst Palestinians and Israelis.