Queer Cruises, Closed Ports, and the Palestinian Pipe Dream

Days after Turkey slammed its gates on an LGBTQ cruise, Egypt followed suit, denying the Scarlet Lady ship entry to Alexandria just before arrival. What began as a sun-soaked Mediterranean jaunt quickly devolved into a floating lesson in geopolitical reality. Organizers scrambled to swap Turkish stops for Crete and Egypt, only to discover that progressive branding doesn’t override local customs or religious sensibilities. The charter, packed with revelers expecting seamless inclusion, learned the hard way that not every shore flies the rainbow flag—or even tolerates its approach.

This fiasco lands like a lead balloon amid the fashionable surge in “queer solidarity with Palestine.” Why Queer Solidarity With Palestine Is Not “Chickens for KFC” reads like a desperate think-piece title, but the chickens have already come home to roost in spectacular fashion. Activists wave keffiyehs and chant slogans, framing Hamas-adjacent causes as natural allies for gender liberation. Meanwhile, the actual societies they’re romanticizing enforce laws that make Turkey’s rebuff look polite. In Gaza and much of the region, open LGBTQ existence isn’t just frowned upon—it’s a non-starter under strict interpretations that brook no dissent. The solidarity isn’t alliance; it’s performative delusion on a civilizational scale.

Reality doesn’t negotiate with hashtags. Hard drugs are starting to look very appealing to soothe the stupid delusions, but no chemical cocktail erases the mismatch. Progressive fantasies collide with ancient fault lines, leaving cruise ships adrift and slogans exposed as wishful cosplay. The ports said no thanks. Perhaps the next itinerary should include a stop in self-awareness—though that dock appears permanently closed.