Transgender Activist: Officials Backing Israel ‘Real Terrorists,’ Not Hamas

Radical transgender activist Qween Jean accused elected officials who support Israel’s right to defend itself of being the “real terrorists” in the conflict in Gaza — not the U.S.-designated Islamic terror group Hamas, which has a history of extraordinary persecution and violence toward LGBTQ individuals in the territory it controls.

Jean, who was born in Haiti before moving to the U.S., co-founded Black Trans Liberation, which aims to “end homelessness within the trans population.” Jean has also long demanded the abolition of police and decriminalization of sex work.

Speaking at a “Ceasefire Now” rally in New York City on Saturday, Jean declared, “We are sick and tired of being told and reminded of the events of October 7,” referencing Hamas’s perpetration of the worst terrorist attack in Israel’s history in an operation stemming from its radical beliefs. 

The massacre occurred after thousands of terrorists belonging to the terrorist organization, whose charter calls openly for the murder of Jews and the elimination of the Jewish state through relentless jihad, burst into Israel and began gunning down participants at an outdoor music festival as others went door-to-door hunting for Jewish men, women, and children in local towns who were then subject to torture, rape, execution, immolation, and kidnapping.

The attack resulted in roughly 1,200 dead inside the Jewish state, over 5,300 more wounded, and at least 242 hostages of all ages taken — of which more than half remain in Gaza. The vast majority of the victims are civilians and include dozens of American citizens.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: Horror of the Hamas Terror Attack on Civilians at Kibbutz Be’eri in Israel

“The reality is the people who are the real terrorists are sitting in office right now,” Jean told the crowd. “The people who are the terrorists are the ones who have watched the genocide go on and on and on, and all they f***king do is they eat ice cream when they are asked about… the starving children in Gaza.”

Jean went on to list public officials from New York, including New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and Rep. Ritchie Torres — all Democrats — describing them all as the “real terrorists” for not caving to Hamas’s demands during the current conflict in Gaza. 

“There is no excuse!” Jean exclaimed, vowing, “We will not stop until Palestine is free.”

“We are never ashamed or afraid to say, ‘Free Palestine,’” the activist added.

Torres, the representative of New York’s 15th Congressional District who left the Congressional Progressive Caucus in February owing to members’ outlandish criticisms of Israel, called out the “anti-Israel extremist” for criticizing those who condemn terrorism as opposed to those who actually commit it, “like Hamas.” 

Former President Donald Trump’s Mideast envoy Jason Greenblatt slammed the “lunacy spread by some of those who claim to support Palestinians.”

Jean “should be sent on a one-way trip to Gaza,” wrote activist and businessman Avi Kaner.

“All the Arab world needed was one more populist praising terrorism,” wrote journalist Hussain Abdul-Hussain, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD).

Jean has previously referred to the New York Police Department (NYPD) as “public terrorists,” while accusing former President Trump of “selling hatred” and advocating for “revolution.”

In 2023, Jean was arrested for disorderly conduct at a “Trans Revolution” rally that the transgender activist organized in Greenwich Village’s Washington Square Park.

In 2021, Jean spoke as a crowd of protesters disrupted diners eating in the outdoor dining area of the upscale New York City French restaurant Balthazar.

“So many black and brown indigenous community members are often left out,” Jean said. “They are often neglected, left out, unhoused, without any food, without medication, without medical care, without mental health access. And so we’re here with the message because we believe that black lives matter.”

“We want to let the patrons know that you cannot ignore us any longer,” Jean added.

As patrons were dining, demonstrators repeatedly banged on the restaurant’s windows, breaking them and causing property damage to the local business. Protesters also vandalized a police vehicle.

During Saturday’s protests, anti-Israel demonstrators blocked the NYPD’s response to a reported explosive device found by an Uber driver, according to authorities who were unable to reach the site of the scene in due time as a result.

Arrests were made among the protesters for obstructing the path of emergency services en route to the scene.

Hamas, the Islamist group that has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2007, is known for enforcing strict Islamic law in the territories it controls, which includes harsh penalties for homosexuality. Hamas’s policies have led to persecution, discrimination, and violence against LGBTQ individuals in areas under its control.

In 2016, Mahmoud Ishtiwi, a leading commander in Hamas’s armed wing, was executed after allegations of homosexual activities.

According to world-renowned military historian and professor Dr. Victor Davis Hanson, Hamas’s “death cult” relies on “useful Western idiots” to support the Palestinian cause, which has “fused with the leftwing DEI industry.” In addition, he argues, pro-Palestinian protests and support for Hamas in the U.S. have alienated many Americans and will all but ensure a tough conservative president in 2024.