Category: LGBT

The Parkfield school controversy was all about homophobia

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The Parkfield school controversy was all about homophobia

By Saima Baig   The only reason to tell children that having two mommies or two daddies in a family is ‘not appropriate’ is if you are a homophobe. Talking about safe and healthy relationships, without considering the gender of the parents, is not something that should ever be considered unsuitable.   However, this is exactly what happened in Birmingham, UK, when Parkfield Community School introduced the No Outsiders programme, the brainchild of its assistant head Teacher Andrew Moffat.  Issues addressed include gender and gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, disability…

“My Mother Won’t Let Me Borrow It”: Homophobia At My Local Library

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“My Mother Won’t Let Me Borrow It”: Homophobia At My Local Library

By Samar Esapzai   This is a cross-post I love libraries. Those who know me well know how much I’ve always loved going to the library, sifting through book after book, and pretty much spending hours there in my spare time. This was, of course, way back in the day when I was still in high school, unmarried, and had no kids. It was a time when I had so much free time that I decided to spend quite a chunk of it at my local library. Indeed it was…

My People Want Me Dead

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My People Want Me Dead

  By Jimmy Bangash   My people want me dead Because I love another man And as I reach out for his hand I must remember it’s Shaytan And that this lifestyle is Haraam My people prize their honour Above sister, mother, brother Above any illicit lover Fake sham marriages instead. My people want me dead Or they want me celibate As they discuss my cock in mosque And muse upon my use of tool Which orifice, with whom? So I internalise this shame Because my people prize their honour…

The Orlando tragedy brings out the same old comments

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The Orlando tragedy brings out the same old comments

By Tehmina Kazi   In what appears to be the worst mass shooting in US history, 29-year-old Omar Mateen opened fire in a gay Florida nightclub at 2am on Sunday, killing 50 people and injuring up to 53 others. Orlando sheriff Jerry Demings called the shooting a “domestic terror incident” and the FBI — who already had Afghan-American citizen Mateen on their radar — are now investigating his links to terror groups abroad. His father, Mir Seddique, claimed that Mateen’s motives were not religious, and that he had been incensed…

Muslims Must Accept LGBTQ People

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Muslims Must Accept LGBTQ People

By E.A. Sofia   Every so often, there is a news story about persecution against LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer) people in Muslim-majority countries or a poll on Muslim views on social issues. The resulting conversations are all too often derailed and the topic of the conversation changed to non-Muslims’ views on Islam. This derailment is convenient for those who wish to avoid the long-overdue conversation that’s needed about how Islamic views affect the lives of LGBTQ people. As Muslims are a minority in the West, there’s a desire to be seen…