The attitude toward the LGBTQ community is one of the taboos of Israeli-Arab society. Thus, when it becomes public, storms erupt. This time, the storm threatens the unity of the Arab Joint List that includes four parties representing Arab society in Israel. The LGBTQ controversy is harsh, fundamental and ideological.

Traditional, conservative Arab society finds it difficult to tolerate those with different sexual orientations, which sometime is seen as "a stain" on the family, the clan or even the entire village. In August 2019, two brothers from the Arab village of Tamra tried to kill their 16-year-old brother who fled to an LGBTQ youth shelter in Tel Aviv. According to the indictment, after it was discovered that their brother was homosexual and was having an affair with a man, the brothers hit and stabbed him and threatened to kill him — all in the presence of the mother.

Another example of this kind of treatment is the drowning of Arab-Israeli dancer Ayman Safiah from the village of Kafr Yasif about two months ago. The local sheikh refused to conduct the traditional Muslim burial ceremony and to allow the funeral procession to pass by the mosque, arguing that Safiah was an “infidel.”

The issue came up again in recent weeks when Julia Zaher, owner of the Al Arz Tahini company, decided to donate to the telephone hotline that supports the Arab LGBTQ community. When this became known, several Arab supermarket chains decided to boycott the company, causing rage on the Arab social media networks. Many criticized the supermarkets, but just as many supported them. When the story got more publicity, a “reverse campaign” was initiated to support Al Arz Tahini. Numerous human rights groups — such as the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and Physicians for Human Rights - Israel, and LGBTQ organizations — called on the public to buy Zaher’s tahini.