Filed under: Communication, Sexual diversity, Violence | Tags: GLBT, homophobia, Israel
Two gay teens have just passed away. A gunman, armed with an Uzi submachine gun, fired in a support gathering at Café Noir, a Gay Center in Tel Aviv. The shooting attack was soon published in some GLBT media and referenced in several tweets around the world. The killer escaped and Israel Police has started a manhunt to catch him. After three or four hours, Tel Aviv was gone of Twitter’s trending topics.
Besides of the malware threat and the spam, the content of the tweets was related to censor the crime, to promote demonstrations in support and to spread the new information about the scene, particularly by updating the facts or by translating the news to another language. However, some of the content in this trending topic had political propaganda against Israel and condemn the act by blaming the country. This is the main idea I have decided to analyze.
Was this hate crime related to religious boundaries? It is possible. Is homophobia spreading only in Israel? No. And it is easy to assess it. For example, two or three days ago, a psychologist was judged in Brazil, because of her activities as therapist in order “to cure” homosexuality. Similar cases could be followed in Iran, United States, Mexico, Germany and other countries. Why to judge Israel with that emphasis? The answer refers to a historical process of hate crimes between Palestine and Israel, and it also includes stereotypes and stigmas, that are older than World War II. Or is it because the weapon was from Israel too?
Homophobic behavior is rising everywhere. Is it a symptom? What is the sickness? The contemporary world promises diversity and tolerance, but the facts show that these processes are still utopian. We have two cold bodies and several wounded victims to prove it. What is the point to promote the peace and respect, or the condemnation of a violent act, if we are doing it with stigmatization against others? Tel Aviv was just a case. Another example of what is happening everywhere. One more relevant discussion could be proposed, for example: Is global media ignoring this kind of hate crimes against GLBT? The shooting was a trending topic before to reach traditional media. Why does it happen? My hypothesis is that this “gay show” does not include any “king of pop”. I expect to be wrong.
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Me llamó mucho la atención que no se publicara en los medios internacionales esto. Me pareció muy acertado tu análisis Alex. No te lo comento en inglés porque no soy tan fluído en esa lengua. Es triste darse cuenta de estos actos de odio, ya sea contra gente gay, o contra gente de diferentes etnias, o contra gente de otras religiones o ideas diferentes. Lo del juicio en Brasil a alguien que pretendía curar la homosexualidad es algo que parece de ciencia ficción y no de este siglo. Gracias por tu análisis.
Comment by Julián Trejos August 2, 2009 @ 4:03 pmCreo que tenés toda la razón con lo de que a este “gay show” le falta su “king of pop”, desgraciadamente. Ése es el problema. ¿Con qué héroe transmitir la noticia? Es claro que pocos medios, muy pocos, harían del asesino el héroe, pero ¿cuántos están dispuestos a hacer de dos jóvenes gay mártires? Es demasiado arriesgado. Así que prefieren, sencillamente, no hablar sobre el tema. Así se le queda bien a todo el mundo…excepto, claro, a los muertos y a los que pueden morir todos los días.
Comment by fche626 August 11, 2009 @ 12:48 am