Outlaw Queer Documentaries

July 15, 2022 5:47 PM

Two very contrasting stories of queer persecution around the globe: Invisible Men (2012) [1h6m] looks at the lives of gay Palestinian men living illegally in Israel to avoid persecution from their families. Proud And Unafraid (2021) [28m] has four outspoken queer individuals speaking from Lagos, Nigeria about their experience with the outlawing of any public display of LGBTQ+ existence in public life.
posted by hippybear (3 comments total)

"Louie" in the first film is speaking Hebrew with an absolutely perfect Tel Aviv drawl. Palestinians generally don't do that owing to pride and also because even the Hebrew Academy favors Palestinian Arabic enunciation over the Tel Aviv drawl. He's speaking like this to stay alive.
posted by ocschwar at 6:29 AM on July 16, 2022 [6 favorites]

In watched the first one. Excellent and harrowing.
posted by Czjewel at 1:40 PM on July 16, 2022

Just to expand on the first documentary a little, gay Palestinian men are at risk of being murdered by their families. They're safer in Israel, where being gay is pretty well accepted-- there's a big pride parade, for example.

Except that *Palestinian* gay men are illegal because they're Palestinian, so the Israeli police capture them and send them back to Palestine, where the risk of being murdered continues. Fortunately, the border is somewhat porous.

The mercy, such as it is, in the situation is Israeli lawyers who can sometimes arrange for asylum in a third county. It's exile, but it's something.
posted by Nancy Lebovitz at 4:20 PM on July 16, 2022