#345: Israel/Palestine and the LGBTQ Community

This is a recording of a NJN webinar from June 18th, 2025.

Navigating issues related to Israel/Palestine in the queer community – and in some of the broader progressive spaces – can be challenging. There is a history of using Israel’s relatively LGBTQ friendly environment to try to distract from the Occupation, a practice which has earned the label “Pinkwashing.” At the same time, there are the sometimes unfair asks that are made of Jews and/or Israelis. 

To help us make sense of how to navigate these intersecting identities and issues, NJN hosted a webinar with two leading Jewish and progressive leaders known for their thoughtfulness and nuance.   

Idit Klein (she/her) is the President & CEO of Keshet, the national organization for LGBTQ equality in Jewish life, a role she has held since 2001. Under her leadership, Keshet has mobilized tens of thousands of Jewish leaders to make LGBTQ+ equality a communal value and priority for action. 

Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie (he/him) is a social activist, storyteller, writer, and community leader. He is the Co-Founding Spiritual Leader of the thriving Lab/Shul community in New York and the creator of the ritual theater company Storahtelling, Inc.

This webinar was moderated by Noam Shelef (he/him), NJN’s Vice President for Communications. Noam is not only a veteran advocate of peace and human rights in Israel/Palestine, he also spent part of his career leading efforts to uphold LGBTQ rights in workplaces.