The organizers of the Rome Pride Parade just announced that the Jewish LGBTQ+ groups Keshet Italia and Keshet Europe will not be allowed to join the parade with a float, citing that they did not sufficiently "distance themselves" from what they describe as the “genocide in Gaza.”
Keshet Italia were clear about what is actually going on, which has nothing to do with helping Palestinians: “Our crime? To be Jewish. This is just the last step in a hostile path. Last year, during the parade, we received explicit antisemitic attacks, and the Roma Pride chose to remain silent, refusing to condemn them. Today, that silence has become active complicity."
The Rome Pride organizers claim to recognize the distinction between Jews and the Israeli government's actions.
Yet they are still imposing an impossible-to-pass purity test on a group for LGBTQ+ Italian Jews.
Queer Jews should not have to check any part of our identities at the door.
Isn't that the whole point of pride?