DC Dyke March Bans Jewish Pride Flag
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Updated 2:50 p.m.
A gay pride parade in Washington, D.C. has been criticized by Jewish and LGBTQ groups for banning Jewish and Israeli symbols from its Friday event.
The D.C. Dyke March is designed to include people of diverse races, religions and gender identities who feel excluded from the more mainstream Pride parade, organizers told The Washington Post.
The march will also ban “nationalist symbols,” including flags that represent what event organizer Yael Horowitz called “nations that have specific oppressive tendencies.”
“This includes Israeli flags, as well as flags that resemble Israeli flags, such as a pride flag with a Star of David in the middle,” march organizer Rae Gaines — who is herself Jewish and a member of the left-wing Jewish group IfNotNow — wrote via Facebook Messenger to would-be participant A.J. Campbell, the former director of the lesbian Jewish group Nice Jewish Girls.
American flags aren’t welcome either, but a Palestinian flag would be accepted, Gaines told the Forward.
“The issue [with the Jewish Pride flag] is where the Star of David is positioned in a way that looks like an Israeli flag, it creates an unsafe space,” she said. “It really is a shame that Israel took this symbol of Judaism and turned it into this nationalist symbol….I understand the Jewish pride flag is a symbol that a lot of Jews have come to embrace, but there are so many other Jewish symbols that we can use to express our Judaism, like a Star of David [on a necklace], like a yarmulke, a tallit.”
Along with IfNotNow, an independent minyan called the New Synagogue Project was listed on the Dyke March’s website as a “community partner,” which Gaines described as just showing solidarity and not necessarily being involved in planning the event. The New Synagogue Project did not respond to a request for comment.
The move is reminiscent of a controversy from 2017 when the Chicago Dyke March kicked out marchers waving pride flags with Stars of David on them, claiming that they were too reminiscent of the Israeli flag and thus “made people feel unsafe.”
D.C. Dyke March organizers said they took the Chicago experience into account when crafting their policies.
“I just thought, the Chicago Dyke March is happening all over again — here,” Campbell told the Post, adding, “I’ve been a Jewish lesbian for a long time, and it’s never been a problem. . . . They seem to have very specific ideas about what kind of Jew I’m supposed to be, and I don’t feel like they get to say that.”
A joint statement from Campbell, the Jewish LGBTQ group A Wider Bridge, the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, and the Jewish feminist group Zioness called on the Dyke March to apologize and change its policy.
“The DC Dyke March should know better than to stoke the flames of division and pain by driving a wedge between Queer Arabs and Jews at a time we must stand united against homo- and transphobia, anti-Semitism, and Islamophobia,” the statement read. “We hope that they will do better––for the sake and advancement of all of our communities.”
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Why on earth would someone in America "feel unsafe" because of an Israeli flag?
Illogical AND comical!
Well they said the American flag was unwelcome as well and we know how much many secular progressives hate almost everything our flag stands for.
Some of those people are freaking idiots!
They also have a right to protest our flag when they feel there is an injustice.
A freedom thing doncha know.
And they can be criticized if we choose to do so--a freedom thing, don't ya know?
Yep freedom to troll. Ain't it grand.
It is your right to do all the trolling you want.
I know how to use the ignore button when it becomes too ludicrous to take.
Obviously you don't.
It isn't TOO ridiculous--yet.
Keep working on it as you have been and you'll get there soon.
For now on when ever I see you this will be my only word to you....
Impasse.
I don't see anyone stopping your trolling..
Yay freedom!!!
Impasse
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You mean imagined injustice?
What exactly is the purpose of gay pride parades?
Why aren't you on my seed defending the Nazis?
I could understand if all nation flags were banned but not picking and choosing certain ones.
The LGBT community actually does not have borders.
Maybe not, but they definitely have some members who are far too easily triggered by the dumbest of things!
Support is support, generally speaking. In a world where it's so easy to be oppressed, why would you reject support?
A claim made without actual justification. I hate that people just say this and don't back it up.
What a bunch of hypocrites. Homosexuality is legal in Israel, with Tel Aviv being one of the most welcoming cities in the world for LGBT as posted by the LGBT themselves, has one of the biggest and best Gay Pride Parades, and this ignorant organization would rather see the flags of Muslim countries in their parade, the people who throw gays off roofs and hang them from cranes. Fucking unbelievable. Israel is oppressive? But terrorists are okay.
And by the way, the star of David is a symbol of a religion and has been for a lot longer than Israel was declared after Partition, and the symbol was put on its flag only then. People have been wearing the Star of David as a symbol of their religion for centuries. Did they also ban the Crescent Moon. How about anyone wearing stars or stripes? I guess in their sick twisted minds THIS star would be okay. Maybe IT fits their agenda.
I'd like to know who in the LGBTQIAP community is excluded from the Pride parade? Are they somehow offended because they did not get a Hallmark invitation to attend?
LGBTIQAP is starting to sound like a Pentagon weapons system or a part of the black budget belonging to the NSA or DIA.
Lesbian, gay, bi, trans, questioning, intersexxed, asexual, and pansexual.
I didn't know the last two, so I had to Google it.
No, the "Q" stands for queer, which is an accepted symbol in the "community."
Do we have to make exceptions for the last three and grant them special rights?
Au Contraire,
.
What special rights do any of the LGBTQIAP community enjoy that you and I also do not enjoy? Do you feel persecuted because Pride parades exist?
I always heard it was questioning.
That is what I also heard. Why would it be queer when the term "queer "is a disparaging euphemism for LGBT as a whole.
'Questioning" to me means that the person is still somewhat in the closet but it starting to open the door. IMVHO.
I thought the Q was "questioning", I heard "U" was just recently added, so I thought that may be "unsure"......
Can I ask a real question without being ridiculed? Why the hell do Pan need a letter in the whole thing? They are just people who can fall for anyone, isn't that well, just, "anyone"? Serious question
I never understood or even heard of pansexuals until Miley Cyrus made an issue of it. I still don't understand it. I thought those people were bisexuals.
I did too
Maybe they should hold their next parade in Iran. Since they hate Israel so much they must really admire and respect the countries that hate Israel, and they allow THEIR flags to fly.
Why do you believe that whenever anyone dares to criticize Israel that the automatic alternative is the approval of Iran? Did you ever consider the possibility that they might not like Iran either and that there is more than a binary solution?
How do you feel about that, epistte?
It's protected free speech.
I didn't know that Palestine had a recognized flag.
I am not aware that anyone said that they are better. You only see a binary argument when someone criticizes Israel. That fact that someone may criticize Israel doesn't mean that the Arab or Persian states or better. Many conservative Christian countries and Christian sects are equally oppressive on LGBT rights.
Th Vatican released this statement about gender a few days ago. Continuing to abuse kids and protecting the perpetrators doesn't seem to be a problem for them though.
The topic of this article is in the headline: "DC Dyke March Bans Jewish Pride Flag" Yet they said that a Palestinian flag would be okay. All I have done is point out their hypocrisy and ignorance. You can say what you want about equivalency, I really don't care. You have the right to speak your mind.
I guess the matter has now been settled - after all, fair is fair.
JEWISH PRIDE FLAGS ALLOWED INTO DC DYKE MARCH AFTER STANDOFF
“In order to have the Jewish Pride flag not be about Zionism, all you have to do is move the star,” Raney told a group of Jewish marchers holding the flags.
BY JTA (Reported by The Jerusalem Post) JUNE 11, 2019
Ridiculous..... This is all bull shit, quite honestly. I'm about tired of it all. Why can't people just be people, why does everyone need a fucking label? I think some epis of Black Mirror are on to something.....