Pro-Palestinian activists disrupt NYC Pride parade, calls for divestment from arms industry

In one of the last parades of Pride Month, pro-Palestinian activists disrupted the New York City Pride Parade to urge the Human Rights Campaign to divest from ties to weapons manufacturing.

Going by the name the Coalition of Fruits to Free Palestine, on Sunday, members of the group stepped in front of the HRC's float, and then unfurled a banner reading "No Queer Liberation Without Palestinian Liberation."

The group said in a public statement, "We stand in solidarity with Palestinian queers, and their struggle against imperialism, which cannot be separated from their struggle against heteropatriarchal capitalism."

At the parade, the pro-Palestinian activists sprayed HRC's float with the words "Free Palestine" and then sat down as they formed a human chain, blocking the float from continuing in the parade. They chanted Free Palestine until the police arrived, detaining around a dozen activists.

This isn't the first time activists have protested against HRC's ties to Israeli weapons manufacturing. In February, queer activists, including Indya Moore and Hamed Sinno, disrupted HRC's annual gala to protest the group's ties to arms manufacturers, such as Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin, both of which have played an important role in Israel's war in Gaza.

Since 7 October, when Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing around 1,150, Israel has killed more than 38,000 and wounded more than 90,000 in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Malnutrition, famine and preventable illnesses have become widespread due to the densely populated enclave's siege and depleted healthcare system. Multiple human rights groups have described Israel's actions in Gaza as genocide. 

Since the outbreak of the war, pro-Palestinian activists have repeatedly staged demonstrations, including public disruptions, in support of civilians in Gaza, demanding a ceasefire and an end to weapons deals with Israel.

In addition to New York, other major cities, such as Toronto and Baltimore, have seen pro-Palestinian demonstrators disrupt pride events. Israel has long been accused of pinkwashing, or marketing itself as gay-friendly compared with other countries in the region. 

Though there is some basis for these claims, leaders of Israel's right-wing coalition have openly spoken out about their contempt for the LGBTQ+ community. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has described himself as a "fascist homophobe" and has made other strongly worded comments about the community.

The activists said in their statement, "Now, 54 years after whoever threw the first brick, when this empire’s persistent pinkwashing has made a necropolis of every pride parade, we must ask ourselves: WHAT THE F*** ARE WE PROUD OF?"