How to Be a Queer, Anti-Zionist, Pro-Palestinian Jew: Featuring Sim Kern
Sim Kern’s journey as an outspoken and empathetic activist for Palestinian liberation began when they realized, as a teenager, that global warming would blow up our planet one day. Back in 1999, saving the environment was not a “mainstream” topic and for Sim, these early climate justice concerns became an entry point for understanding that our global system was catastrophically racist, colonial and capitalist. Nonetheless, Sim admits that it was particularly hard to unlearn Zionist indoctrination about settler colonialism, apartheid and occupation in Palestine that was part and parcel of growing up Jewish in the US. It is this journey of becoming anti-Zionist and finding creative ways to resist it that they map in their book Genocide Bad: Notes on Palestine, Jewish History and Collective Liberation. (Interlink Books, 2025).
Part memoir, part rant, and part manifesto, Sim writes about having found themselves in the position of an activist after their posts on Palestine started going viral in October 2023. Sim’s posts were informative and analytical, and they were able to break down complex concepts and explain the troubling histories of Zionism and settler colonialism in a clear, accessible style. They went from being known as a speculative author, to a book influencer to becoming a fierce voice for liberation, and justice, condemning the occupation and genocide in Palestine. I asked if their insistence on positioning themselves as Jewish American might efface Palestinian identity since this identity has emerged as oppositional to Palestinian existence because of Israel’s genocidal war. They replied that while you simply need to be human to oppose genocide, their identity as a US Jew is constantly being brought to bear upon Palestine and so they have no choice but to speak from that position: “I have nothing to do with this region. But Israel insists that that I do have a special right to Palestine, that Palestinians who actually lived on that land or their parents or grandparents lived on that land for tens of generations don't have.”
Sim admits that as the violence in Palestine plumbs unimaginable depths, it has gotten harder to practice Jewishness even at a light cultural level. But they firmly believe it is imperative they hold on to their anti-Zionism because as “an American Jew, my voice is given special power and special attention in this conversation and whether that's fair or not.”
Sim also unpacks American propaganda about the memory of the Nazi holocaust and how it engenders a Jewish exceptionalism, effectively shutting down conversations on the histories of other genocides. As a former middle school teacher, they wish that the histories of colonialism and genocide were taught with a comparative approach.
In addition to decolonizing their Jewishness, Sim’s witty take-downs of Israeli pinkwashing have become particularly important. They explain that “there's this bullshit idea that Israel is some haven for gay people” while a false narrative circulates about the Palestinian culture of killing gay people. Not only does this Zionist propaganda erase queer Palestinians, but also generates consent for the idea that it is okay to erase a population because they might be anti-queer.
Lastly, I asked Sim about their following of half a million people on social media, and whether this means they might have broken out of the echo chamber. They admit that “people are living in very different informational realities,” and emphasize the importance of continuously using different approaches, formats and styles because “you don't know what video, what comment, what post is going to be the little crack in someone's worldview.”
Further reading:
Genocide Bad: Notes on Palestine, Jewish History and Collective Liberation by Sim Kern. Buy here: https://interlinkbooks.com/product/genocide-bad/
Follow Sim Kern: On Instagram @sim_bookstagrams_badly https://www.instagram.com/sim_bookstagrams_badly
TikTok @simkern https://www.tiktok.com/@simkern
