For Hannah Simpson (Elsie), carrying both the Pride flag and the Israeli flag through New York City's Pride Parade was about refusing to choose between different parts of her identity.
Describing herself as "your neighbor's snarky transgender woman activist," Simpson said the march represented the freedom to embrace every aspect of who she is: an American, a transgender woman and a Jew with deep ties to Israel.
Transgender Jewish activist Hannah Simpson
"Pride is about not compromising on who you are," Simpson told Sharon Kidon in an interview with ynet Global. "It's about who you love, who you know yourself to be, and also celebrating where you come from and the people who fought and sacrificed so we could live as ourselves today."
She said the overwhelming response from paradegoers was positive, with many cheering the group's message of inclusion. At the same time, she acknowledged encountering what she described as a vocal minority that responded with hostility and aggression. "There was a very vocal minority that made things uncomfortable, angry and even violent," she said. "That's unfortunate because it detracts from the experience for everyone."
Simpson believes attitudes toward Jews and Israelis in New York have shifted dramatically in recent years. While the city has long been home to one of the world's largest Jewish communities and historically embraced Israel's participation in Pride celebrations, she said political rhetoric has increasingly turned Israel into a divisive issue.
"It's scary," she said. "There are people turning Israel into a wedge issue, creating a situation where Jewish and Israeli interests are blamed for failures while successes are framed as happening despite them. That's a no-win scenario."
She contrasted today's atmosphere with the past, noting that the Israeli Consulate in New York was among the first official foreign delegations to participate in the city's Pride Parade, something she said reflected both Israel's democratic values and New York's openness.
For Simpson, Jewish identity and LGBTQ identity should reinforce one another rather than compete. She argued that too many LGBTQ Jews have felt forced to leave Jewish spaces in search of acceptance, weakening their connection to the broader Jewish community.
Transgender Jewish activist Hannah Simpson
(Photo: from Instagram - hannah.e.simpson)
"When people are pushed out of Jewish life, they sometimes stop seeing that identity as something worth holding onto," she said. "The Jewish community should be the first place where people are accepted for who they are."
Asked about New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani and whether he is driving or reflecting these trends, Simpson said the political climate predates any one individual but warned that leaders have a responsibility for how they frame public discourse.
She criticized Mamdani's decision not to participate in this year's Celebrate Israel Parade, breaking with decades of tradition established by previous New York City mayors. "A leader who wants to bring people together would say, 'I'm marching because my constituents care about Israel,'" she said. "Support for Israel should transcend any particular government, just as patriotism should transcend any particular administration."
Pride Parade
(Photo: from Instagram - hannah.e.simpson)
Simpson also pointed to developments beyond the United States, saying anti-Israel sentiment has increasingly affected Jewish participation in Pride events across Europe. She noted that Israeli participation was banned from this year's Rome Pride parade and said Jewish participants in Naples faced attacks and harassment.
"I think it's really important that queer Jews remain connected not only to our siblings in Israel, but to Jewish communities across the diaspora," she said. Reflecting on her own journey, Simpson said she draws strength from both LGBTQ history and Jewish history. "I'm incredibly proud to be a queer and transgender Jewish woman," she said. "I get to draw strength from the stories of Stonewall in New York and the Stonewall in Jerusalem."