Two women have been charged with assaulting a 29-year-old transgender person in a bathroom at a popular Glenwood South bar last month. According to investigators, the victim was inside the women’s bathroom at Milk Bar on Dec. 9 when she was sexually assaulted by two other women. Amber Harrell, 38, and Jessica Fowler, 31, are both charged with second-degree kidnapping and sexual battery in connection with the incident.
The victim called 911 the day after the incident. She told the dispatcher that the women started verbally abusing her in the bathroom, exposing themselves and touching her. The touching continued at the bar. “One of the girls is still touching all over me. She would not let go. I asked her numerous times. She (bartender) could see I was visibly uncomfortable,” the victim told the dispatcher.
A debut collection of linked short stories about love, loss, and intimacy, Oranges is a gentle look at what it means to come of age and grow older as a gay man in the Midwest. The slim collection of nine tales sketches the life of Michael Dolin, a civil lawyer who grew up closeted in Mason City, Iowa, before finding self-respect in Minneapolis as an adult. In spare prose, author Gary Eldon Peter portrays Michael’s lifelong journey toward inner peace with care and compassion.
The first story, “Blankets,” opens the collection with the protagonist at his most vulnerable. A recent college graduate, Michael struggles to balance his attempts to study for the LSAT with the demands of his job at a local hospital, where he cares for acutely depressed patients and dreams of finding stability. The aspiring lawyer also has just moved into the home of his partner, Kevin, who is living with HIV in the eighties. How the couple’s relationship will grow is by no means certain, but the intimate moments the two men share at their kitchen table are among the most memorable in the story, which, as with the other tales, unfolds in a series of succinct vignettes.
The rest of the collection focuses on either Michael’s adolescence or his mid life. In “The Bachelor” and “Donny,” Peter fully renders the confusion and turmoil that accompany Michael’s teenage realization that he’s gay. By contrast, in “Skating,” “Oranges,” and “Sun Country,” the author sympathizes with an adult Michael’s efforts to help care for Kevin, his mother, and his father, all of whom are ailing and nearing their deaths. Across stories Peter switches from first to third person and moves around in time, but his primary concern always is to flesh out Michael’s interiority.
“Wedding,” the final story, ends the collection on an uplifting note. The story explores Michael’s relationship with his new partner Stephen as the couple prepares for and attends the wedding of his nephew Jason. For much of the story, Michael frets over the idea that his sister Susan, Jason’s mother, will react negatively to his male partner’s appearance at her son’s wedding, but his worrying amounts to very little. Knowing how lonely Michael has been since Kevin’s death, Susan deals with the unfamiliar experience as best as she can, even if she doesn’t quite welcome Stephen into the family with open arms. The two men end the night dancing in their hotel room, optimistic about the future.
Warmhearted and thoughtful, Peter is at his best when he’s attending to the nuances of Michael’s close relationships. Whether charting Michael’s clumsy interactions with his father at a retirement home or detailing the sundry ways he tries to brighten Kevin’s last days, the author manages to make each relationship feel fresh and distinct from the rest. The best stories in the collection are those that show Michael successfully closing the distance between him and a loved one, after a period of emotional or physical separation.
As sweet as the stories are, they sometimes enter the realm of the saccharine. Conflict rarely erupts across these tales, often appearing only as a distant threat. The stories also tend to be a bit too well plotted, and the endings are uniformly forward looking and hopeful, even in the face of great loss. Time and time again, Michael finds himself in the difficult position of having to comfort his loved ones as they approach death, but the author rarely dwells in his protagonist’s pain or frustration. A little more anger would have heightened the realism of these slice-of-life stories
In spite of some blemishes, Oranges is still promising as a debut collection. Peter is talented at honing in on small moments that reveal character, and he sensitively captures the quietude of life in the Midwest. It’s not difficult to see why the collection won the Many Voices Project competition in Prose, hosted by Minnesota-based New Rivers Press. From his straightforward language to his penchant for precious endings, the author brushes aside cleverness and cynicism at every turn, and his stories earnestly depict an endless longing for human connection against the backdrop of a placid landscape.
A church in Weed, California put up a sign with homophobic and transphobic sentiments recently. Residents, however, did not take kindly to it.
Trinity Bible Presbyterian Church’s sign reads: ‘Bruce Jenner is still a man. Homosexuality is still a sin. The culture may change, the Bible does not.’
According to local CBS news station KTVL, who first reported the story, residents of Weed said the sign has been up since the start of the new year.
Community members gathered for the Shastina Love Rally over the weekend and protested the sign.
‘Just a community effort to show that we actually care about all members of our community, regardless of orientation gender or other aspects of identity that make them unique,’ said Robyn Vandiver, one of the many protesters.
Vandiver and other people also said they wanted to not only protest, but show the LGBTI community love and support.
Another protester, Sophia Bullington, commented words like these could be harmful to people.
‘You never know who might not be out and public about it and be willing to share because of things like this. They might be scared,’ she said.
Church’s pastor gets defensive
The church’s pastor, Justin Hoke, posted a photo of the sign on his own Facebook and defended it in a subsequent comment.
‘It is not possible to preach the gospel in short pithy statements,’ he wrote.
‘I have used this sign for 7 years now to provoke reflection or make a strong point about a single truth. Such as this one: the culture does not determine truth God does.’
Pastor Justin Hoke’s comment | Photo: Facebook/Justin Hoke
He went on to say that ‘the church has lost its saltiness’. He also expects ‘flack from the visible church’ for this sign as well.
Protesters acknowledged the church’s First Amendment right, but still disagreed.
Vandiver said this will have far-reaching consequences: ‘The way that people treat one another and the respect that they show or the hate that they show will have ramifications on individuals and families, throughout our community, as well as the world.’
The Denver City Council voted unanimously to ban gay conversion therapy for minors in the city on Monday night. Denver is the first jurisdiction in Colorado to pass such a prohibition, according to a news release from the office of Mayor Michael Hancock.
Hancock’s office proposed the prohibition. “This is a very proud moment for my administration, for members of City Council, and for everyone in Denver who values inclusion and acceptance,” Hancock said in the release.
The ban, recommended by Denver’s LGTBQ Commission and submitted by the Office of Human Rights and Community Partnerships, will “protect youth from dangerous and discredited practices aimed at changing their sexual orientation or gender identity or expression,” the release said.
Attempts to implement a statewide ban have failed four times in the Colorado legislature.
Gavin Newsom (D) took office as California’s new governor on Monday, vowing during his swearing-in ceremony to be hard on President Donald Trump while uniting rural and urban communities in the country’s most populous state.
It was a long-awaited moment for the former California lieutenant governor and San Francisco Mayor, who announced his gubernatorial candidacy nearly four years ago. The Democrat takes over the post from Jerry Brown, a decadeslong fixture in statewide politics who termed out of office after 16 non-consecutive years as California governor.
“Here in California, we will prove that people of good faith and firm will can still come together to achieve big things,” said Newsom, who handily defeated Republican challenger John Cox. “We will offer an alternative to the corruption and incompetence in the White House. Our government will be progressive, principled, and always on the side of the people.”
Like Brown, Newsom has positioned himself as a lead figure in California’s resistance to Trump, who recently called him a “clown” who “wants to give [immigrants] health care, education, everything.”
When one of Newsom’s four young children sleepily wandered onstage during his speech Monday ― much to the audience’s, and Twitter’s, amusement ― it helped him underscore his stance against the Trump administration’s border policies and detainment of undocumented children.
“All kids ― not just the children of a governor and a filmmaker ― should have a good life in California … not ripped away from their parents at the border,” he said, referencing his documentary filmmaker wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom.
Also like Brown, Newsom is poised to become a stand-in representative for the U.S. in international climate change discussions while the Trump administration reneges on Obama-era commitments. But unlike Brown, Newsom has vowed to take a hardline stance against any future fracking projects in the state. One of his first priorities as governor is working on a plan putting California on a path to 100 percent renewable energy, he’s said.
“Where Washington failed on the epochal challenge of climate change, California led, extending our cap-and-trade system and setting bold targets for lowering greenhouse gas emissions, then beating them,” Newsom said, tipping his hat to Brown.
The new governor also made an appeal to the state’s largely conservative rural voters and promised they wouldn’t be ignored ― a sentiment voters are likely to hear on the 2020 campaign trail from Democratic presidential hopefuls dogged by reputations as coastal elites.
“We will be ‘California for all,’” he promised. “We won’t be divided between rural, urban, north, south, coastal and inline.”
“I recognize that many in our rural communities believe that Sacramento doesn’t care about them — doesn’t even really see them,” he said of the the state’s inland regions, where farmers have suffered the brunt of the state’s drought and unpredictable weather conditions. “Well, I see you. I care about you. And I will represent you with pride.”
Equality California, the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization, released the following statement from Executive Director Rick Zbur on Monday:
“Governor Jerry Brown has long championed the cause of LGBTQ equality in California, making more progress in his four terms than any other governor in the nation to date. From decriminalizing same-sex relationships in 1975 and appointing the state’s first openly gay judge in 1979 to signing more than 55 pro-equality bills into law during the last eight years, Governor Brown has affirmed his commitment to ensuring all Californians are treated with equal dignity and respect. We have not always agreed with the governor’s approach to achieving full LGBTQ equality, but we have never once doubted his sincere dedication to our cause.
“As Governor Brown leaves office today, we thank him for his lifetime of public service. We are grateful to the governor, to First Lady Anne Gust Brown and to their staff for their strong partnership over the years. In particular, Equality California thanks the governor’s late chief of staff Nancy McFadden, who was an incomparable ally to California’s LGBTQ community, a trailblazer in every sense of the word and a champion for the Golden State. Together, they helped make California a beacon of hope to LGBTQ people everywhere.”
Background on Governor Brown’s pro-equality record:
In 1975 — more than a decade before the Supreme Court upheld Georgia’s sodomy law in Bowers v. Hardwick and nearly three decades before the Court would reverse that decision in Lawrence v. Texas — Governor Brown signed Willie Brown’s AB 489, which repealed California’s sodomy law and decriminalized gay relationships.
In 1979, Brown appointed Steve Lachs as the nation’s first openly gay judge on the municipal bench.
As attorney general and then as governor, Brown refused to defend anti-gay Proposition 8 in federal court.
In his last two terms as governor, Brown has signed 55 out of the 60 pro-equality bills sponsored by Equality California that reached his desk — including the first-in-the-nation protection against so-called “conversion therapy” for LGBTQ youth, the FAIR Education Act requiring LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum, the ban of the use of so-called “gay panic” and “transgender panic” criminal defenses, HIV criminalization reform and more — earning him a lifetime score of 92 percent.
About Equality California:
Equality California is the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization. We bring the voices of LGBTQ people and allies to institutions of power in California and across the United States, striving to create a world that is healthy, just, and fully equal for all LGBTQ people. We advance civil rights and social justice by inspiring, advocating and mobilizing through an inclusive movement that works tirelessly on behalf of those we serve. www.eqca.org
Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury in ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ (Screenshot via YouTube)
The 76th annual Golden Globes, hosted by Andy Samberg and Sandra Oh, recognized the best in film and television at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Sunday with some prominent awards handed to LGBT projects.
“Bohemian Rhapsody,” the Queen biopic starring Rami Malek as queer frontman Freddie Mercury, won Best Motion Picture Drama. Malek’s portrayal of Mercury was also honored with the award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama. Before raking in the accolades, the film was already a box office hit becoming the biggest-selling music biopic in history.
Malek notably didn’t thank director Bryan Singer during his acceptance speech. Singer was fired from the film after being “unexpectedly unavailable” during filming. Rumors have also swirled that Singer and Malek clashed while filming. After his speech, Malek explained why he chose to omit recogizning Singer.
“There’s only one thing we needed to do and that was to celebrate Freddie Mercury in this film. He is a marvel. There is only one Freddie Mercury and nothing would compromise us giving him the love, celebration and adulation he deserves,” Malek said per People.
“The Assassination of Gianni Versace” won for Best Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. Executive producer Brad Simpson noted in his speech that although the story is historical, set in ’90s Miami, it is not dated.
“This was the era of ‘don’t ask, don’t tell.’ It was the Defense of Marriage Act era. Those forces of hate are still here with us. They tell us we should be scared of people who are different than us. They tell us we should put walls around ourselves. As artists we must fight back by representing those who are not represented by providing a space for people with new voices to tell stories that haven’t been told. As human beings, we can resist in the streets, resist at the ballot box. and practice love and empathy in our everyday lives. Our show is a period piece, but those forces are not historical. They are here, they are with us, and we must resist,” Simpson said.
Darren Criss, who played spree killer Andrew Cunanan, also won for Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television.
“This has been a marvelous year for representation in Hollywood, and I am so enormously proud to be a teeny tiny part of that as the son of a firecracker Filipino woman from Cebu that dreamed of coming into this country and getting to be invited to cool parties like this. Mom, I know you’re watching this,” Criss told the crowd.“I love you dearly. I dedicate this to you. This is totally awesome.”
Lady Gaga won Best Original Song in a Motion Picture for “Shallow” although both she and her “A Star is Born” co-star Bradley Cooper didn’t bring home awards for Best Actress, Best Actor or Best Director.
Out actor Ben Whishaw also won for his role as Norman Scott in “A Very English Scandal.”
“He took on the establishment with courage and a defiance that I find completely inspiring. He’s a true queer hero and icon. And Norman, this is for you,” Whishaw told the crowd as he accepted his award.
Check out the complete list of winners below.
Best Motion Picture – Drama
“Black Panther”
“BlackKklansman” “Bohemian Rhapsody”
“If Beale Street Could Talk”
“A Star Is Born”
Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
“Crazy Rich Asians”
“The Favourite”
“Green Book”
“Mary Poppins Returns”
“Vice”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama Glenn Close-“The Wife”
Lady Gaga-“A Star Is Born”
Nicole Kidman-“Destroyer”
Melissa McCarthy- “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
Rosamund Pike-“A Private War”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama
Bradley Cooper-“A Star Is Born”
Willem Dafoe-“At Eternity’s Gate”
Lucas Hedges-“Boy Erased” Rami Malek-“Bohemian Rhapsody”
John David Washington-“BlackKklansman”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy
Emily Blunt-“Mary Poppins Returns” Olivia Colman-“The Favourite”
Elsie Fisher- “Eighth Grade”
Charlize Theron-“Tully”
Constance Wu-“Crazy Rich Asians”
Best Director
Bradley Cooper-“A Star Is Born” Alfonso Cuaron-“Roma”
Peter Farrelly-“Green Book”
Spike Lee (“BlackKklansman”)
Adam McKay (“Vice”)
Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy Christian Bale-“Vice”
Lin-Manuel Miranda-“Mary Poppins Returns”
Viggo Mortensen-“Green Book”
Robert Redford-“The Old Man and the Gun”
John C. Reilly-“Stan and Ollie”
Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
Amy Adams-“Vice”
Claire Foy-“First Man” Regina King-“If Beale Street Could Talk”
Emma Stone-“The Favourite”
Rachel Weisz-“The Favourite”
Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture
Mahershala Ali-“Green Book”
Timothée Chalamet-“Beautiful Boy”
Adam Driver-“BlackKklansman”
Richard E. Grant-“Can You Ever Forgive Me?”
Sam Rockwell-“Vice“
Best Original Score in a Motion Picture
Marco Beltrami-“A Quiet Place”
Alexandre Desplat-“Isle of Dogs”
Ludwig Göransson-“Black Panther” Justin Hurwitz-“First Man”
Marc Shaiman (“Mary Poppins Returns”)
Best Original Song in a Motion Picture
“All the Stars”-“Black Panther”
“Girl in the Movies”-“Dumplin’”
“Requiem for a Private War”-“A Private War”
“Revelation”-“Boy Erased” “Shallow”-“A Star Is Born”
Best Screenplay in a Motion Picture
Barry Jenkins-“If Beale Street Could Talk”
Adam McKay-“Vice”
Alfonso Cuaron-“Roma”
Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara-“The Favourite” Peter Farrelly, Nick Vallelonga, Brian Currie-“Green Book”
Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language
“Capernaum”
“Girl”
“Never Look Away” “Roma”
“Shoplifters”
Best Animated Film
“Incredibles 2”
“Isle of Dogs”
“Mirai”
“Ralph Breaks the Internet” “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”
Best TV series – Drama “The Americans”
“Bodyguard”
“Homecoming”
“Killing Eve”
“Pose”
Best performance by Actress in a TV series – Drama
Caitriona Balfe-“Outlander”
Elisabeth Moss-“The Handmaid’s Tale” Sandra Oh-“Killing Eve”
Julia Roberts-“Homecoming”
Keri Russell-“The Americans”
Best performance by an Actor in a TV Series – Drama
Jason Bateman-“Ozark”
Stephan James-“Homecoming” Richard Madden-“Bodyguard”
Billy Porter-“Pose”
Matthew Rhys-“The Americans”
Best TV series – Musical or Comedy
“Barry”
“The Good Place”
“Kidding” “The Kominsky Method”
“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”
Best Performance by an Actor in a TV series – Musical or Comedy
Sasha Baron Cohen-“Who Is America?”
Jim Carrey-“Kidding” Michael Douglas-“The Kominsky Method”
Donald Glover-“Atlanta”
Bill Hader-“Barry”
Best Performance by an Actress in a TV series – Musical or Comedy
Kristen Bell-“The Good Place”
Candice Bergen-“Murphy Brown”
Alison Brie-“GLOW” Rachel Brosnahan-“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”
Debra Messing-“Will & Grace”
Best Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
“The Alienist” “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”
“Dirty John”
“Escape at Dannemora”
“Sharp Objects”
“A Very English Scandal”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Antonio Banderas-“Genius: Picasso”
Daniel Bruhl-“The Alienist” Darren Criss-“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”
Benedict Cumberbatch-“Patrick Melrose”
Hugh Grant-“A Very English Scandal”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Amy Adams-“Sharp Objects” Patricia Arquette-“Escape at Dannemora”
Connie Britton-“Dirty John”
Laura Dern-“The Tale”
Regina King-“Seven Seconds”
Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Alan Arkin-“The Kominsky Method”
Kieran Culkin-“Succession
Edgar Ramirez- “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story” Ben Whishaw-“A Very English Scandal”
Henry Winkler-“Barry”
Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Alex Borstein-“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” Patricia Clarkson-“Sharp Objects”
Penélope Cruz-“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story”
Thandie Newton (“Westworld”)
Yvonne Strahovski (“The Handmaid’s Tale”)
Chinese gay dating app Blued is halting new user registration for a week, it said on Sunday (Jan 6), following media reports that underage users caught HIV after going on dates set up via the world’s largest networking app for the LGBT community.
On Saturday (Jan 5), citing academic research, financial magazine Caixin said juveniles were heavily involved in the gay dating app, where some teenagers had even hosted live streaming. It added that many gay teenagers had unprotected sex through the app and contracted HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
In response, Blued vowed to launch a “comprehensive content audit and regulation”, and crack down on juvenile users posing as adults and on texts, pictures and groups that involve minors.
Blued claims to have 40 million registered users and is financially backed in part by the state-run Beijing News. Grindr is also now fully-owned by a Chinese company.
Islam once considered homosexuality to be one of the most normal things in the world.
The Ottoman Empire, the seat of power in the Muslim world, didn’t view lesbian or gay sex as taboo for centuries. They formally ruled gay sex wasn’t a crime in 1858.
But as Christians came over from the west to colonize, they infected Islam with homophobia.
The truth is many Muslims alive today believe the prophet Muhammad supported and protected sexual and gender minorities.
But go back to the beginning, and you’ll see there is far more homosexuality in Islam than you might have ever thought before.
1 Ancient Muslim borrowed culture from the boy-loving Ancient Greeks
The Islamic empires, (Ottoman, Safavid/Qajar, Mughals), shared a common culture. And it shared a lot of similarities with the Ancient Greeks.
Persianate cultures, all of them Muslim, dominated modern day India and Arab world. And it was very common for older men to have sex with younger, beardless men. These younger men were called ‘amrad’.
Once these men had grown his beard (or ‘khatt’), he then became the pursuer of his own younger male desires.
And in this time, once you had fulfilled your reproductive responsibilities as a man you could do what you like with younger men, prostitutes and other women.
Society completely accepted this, at least in elite circles. Iranian historian Afsaneh Najmabadi writes how official Safavid chroniclers would describe the sexual lives of various Shahs, the ruling class, without judgment.
There was some judgment over ‘mukhannas’. These were men (some researchers consider them to be transgender or third gender people) who would shave their beards as adults to show they wished to continue being the object of desire for men. But even they had their place in society. They would often be used as servants for prophets.
‘It wasn’t exactly how we would define homosexuality as we would today, it was about patriarchy,’ Ludovic-Mohamed Zahed, a gay imam who lives in Marseilles, France, told GSN.
‘It was saying, “I’m a man, I’m a patriarch, I earn money so I can rape anyone including boys, other slaves and women.” We shouldn’t idealize antique culture.’
2 Paradise included male virgins, not just female ones
There is nowhere in the Qu’ran that states the ‘virgins’ in paradise are only female.
The ‘hur’, or ‘houris’, are female. They have a male counterpart, the ‘ghilman’, who are immortal young men who wait and serve people in paradise.
‘Immortal [male] youths shall surround them, waiting upon them,’ it is written in the Qu’ran. ‘When you see them, you would think they are scattered pearls.’
Zahed says you should look at Ancient Muslim culture with the same eyes as Ancient Greek culture.
‘These amrads are not having sex in a perfectly consenting way because of power relationships and pressures and so on.
‘However, it’s not as heteronormative as it might seem at first. There’s far more sexual diversity.’
3 Sodom and Gomorrah is not an excuse for homophobia in Islam
Like the Bible, the Qu’ran tells the story of how Allah punished the ancient inhabitants of the city of Sodom.
Two angels arrive at Sodom, and they meet Lot who insists they stay the night in his house. Then other men learn about the strangers, and insist on raping them.
While many may use this as an excuse to hate gay people, it’s not. It’s about Allah punishing rape, violence and refusing hospitality.
Historians often rely on literary representations for evidence of history. And many of the poems from ancient Muslim culture celebrate reciprocal love between two men. There are also factual reports saying it was illegal to force your way onto a young man.
The punishment for a rape of a young man was caning the feet of the perpetrator, or cutting off an ear, Najmabadi writes. Authorities are documented as carrying these punishments out in Qajar Iran.
4 Lesbian sex used as a ‘cure’
Fitting a patriarchal society, we know very little about the sex lives of women in ancient Muslim culture.
But ‘Sihaq’, translated literally as ‘rubbing’, is referenced as lesbian sex.
Sex between two women was decriminalized in the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century, probably because it was deemed to have very little importance.
Physicians believed lesbianism developed from a hot itch on a woman’s vulva that could only be soothed by another woman’s sexual fluid. This derived from Greek medicine.
Much later, the 16th century Italian scientist Prosper Alpini claimed the hot climate caused ‘excessive sexual desire and overeating’ in women. This caused a humor imbalance that caused illnesses, like ‘lesbianism’. He recommended bathing to ‘remedy’ this. However, because men feared women were having sex with other women at private baths, many husbands tried to restrict women from going.
5 Lesbian ‘marriage’ and legendary couples
In Arabic folklore, al-Zarqa al-Yamama (‘the blue-eyed woman of Yamama’) fell in love with Christian princess Hind of the Lakhmids. When al-Zarqa, who had the ability to see events in the future, was crucified, it was said the princess cut her hair and mourned until she died.
Many books, especially in the 10th century, celebrated lesbian couples. Sapphic love features in the Book of Salma and Suvad; the Book of Sawab and Surur (of Justice and Happiness); the Book of al-Dahma’ and Nisma (of the Dark One and the Gift from God).
‘In palaces, there is evidence hundreds of women established some kind of contract. Two women would sign a contract swearing to protect and care for one another. Almost like a civil partnership or a marriage,’ Zahed said.
‘Outside of these palaces, this was also very common. There was a lot of Sapphic poetry showing same-sex love.’
As Europeans colonized these countries, depictions of lesbian love changed.
Samar Habib, who studied Arabo-Islamic texts, says the Arab epic One Thousand and One Nights proves this. He claims some stories in this classic show non-Muslim women preferred other women as sexual partners. But the ‘hero’ of the tale converts these women to Islam, and to heterosexuality.
6 Muhammad protected trans people
‘Muhammad housed and protected transgender or third gender people,’ Zahed said. ‘The leader of the Arab-Muslim world welcomed trans and queer people into his home.
‘If you look at the traditions some use to justify gay killings, you find much more evidence – clear evidence – that Muhammad was very inclusive.
‘He was protecting these people from those who wanted to beat them and kill them.’
7 How patriarchy transformed Islam
Europeans forced their way into the Muslim world, either through full on colonialism, like in India or Egypt, or economically and socially, like in the Ottoman Empire.
They pushed their cultural practices and attitudes on to Muslims: modern Islamic fundamentalism flourished.
While the Ottoman Empire resisted European culture at first, hence gay sex being allowed in 1858, nationalization soon won out. Two years later, in 1870, India’s Penal Code declared gay sex a crime. LGBTI Indians finally won against this colonial law in 2018.
But what is it like to be colonized? And why did homophobia get so much more extreme?
‘With the west coming in and colonizing, they think [Muslims] are lazy and passive and weak,’ Zahed said.
‘As Arab men, we have to prove we are more powerful and virile and manly. Modern German history is like that, showing how German nationalization rose after [defeat in] the First World War.
‘It’s tribalism, it’s the same problem. It’s about killing everyone against my tribe. I’m going to kill the weak. I’m going to kill anyone who doesn’t fulfil this aggressive nationalistic stereotype.’
Considering the male-dominant society already existed, it was easy for the ‘modern’ patriarchy to end up suppressing women and criminalizing LGBTI lives.
‘In the early 20th century, Arabs were ashamed of their ancient history,’ Zahed added. ‘They tried to purify it, censor it, to make it more masculine. There had to be nothing about femininity, homosexuality or anything. That’s how we got to how are today.’
8 What would Muhammad think about LGBTI rights?
Muhammad protected sexual and gender minorities, supporting those at the fringes of society.
And if Muslims are to follow in the steps of early Islamic culture and the prophet’s life, there is no reason Islam should oppose LGBTI people.
For Zahed, an imam, this is what he considers a true Muslim.
‘What should we do if we call ourselves Muslims now? Defend human rights, diversity and respect identity. If we trust the tradition, he was proactively defending sexual and gender minorities, and human rights.’
Brazil’s new president, Jair Bolsonaro, has stayed true to his word and signed executive orders targeting the LGBTI community.
The ‘proud homophobe’ used his first day in office to sign the orders. They will affect the LGBTI community, indigenous groups and descendants of slaves.
Just hours after his inauguration Bolsonaro removed LGBTI issues from consideration at the new human rights ministry, according to the Associated Press. He did not name another agency tasked to handle LGBTI issues.
The new human rights minister and former evangelical pastor, Damares Alves, has previously said ‘the Brazilian family is being threatened’ by inclusive policies.
‘The state is lay, but this minister is terribly Christian,’ she said in her first address as minister.
‘Girls will be princesses and boys will be princes. There will be no more ideological indoctrination of children and teenagers in Brazil.’
Bolsonaro’s actions against the LGBTI community and other minorities come as no surprise.
He has previously said he would rather have a ‘dead son rather than a gay son’. He also said parents should beat their children back to being ‘normal’ if they suspected them of being gay.
LGBT activist Symmy Larrat told AP said she is not hopeful the Bolsonaro government will treat the community fairly.
‘The human rights ministry discussed our concerns at a body called secretariat of promotion and defense of human rights,’ she said.
‘That body just disappeared, just like that. We don’t see any signs there will be any other government infrastructure to handle LGBT issues.’
But Bolsonaro has friends in powerful places.
US President Donald Trump and the US’ United Nations Ambassador, Nikki Haley both tweeted their congratulation to Bolsonaro after his inauguration.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Trump was ‘very pleased with the relationship that our two countries are on the precipice of beginning to develop’.
‘He’s also confident that it (the relationship between the two countries) will benefit the world and the set of shared values that we believe we can together advance,’ he said.
