This post pretty much came about because I was asked if I had resources for Muslims who were discovering or newly coming to terms with their sexuality. I didn’t, and the poor advice I had to offer was … poor. So, I pulled up a few of the blogs I followed that are targeted towards queer Muslims, and put together this little post for you!
Last updated: 02.16.17 (outdated info italicised)
Ahwaa: An open space to debate LGBTQ-related issues in the Middle East
YouKnow-You'reaQueermuslim-When
Muslims Against Homophobia and LGBT Hate facebook group
Queer Palestinian Empowerment Network (QPEN) facebook page
Queer Muslims of Boston facebook page
Totally Radical Muslim Zine
A quick gender/sexuality 101 (An in-depth gender/sexuality/identity 201)
But what does a queer Muslim even look like? (hint: they look like people)
Defining homonationalism and pinkwashing. [A little bit more on pinkwashing.]
PDF:Homosexuality In Islam, by Scott Siraj al-Haqq Kugle (Intro + 1st Chap) Buy your own copy!
PDF:Muslim LGBT Inclusion Project, by Intersections International
More reading (a list w.some repeats): [x]
Why Safe Spaces are Important [reposted with permission from author]
“I’m confused about my sexuality.”
“I need proof from Qur'an and Sunnah that I’m not Haraam.”
“What about the Qur'an and Hadith that chastise LGBTQ Muslims?”
“You cherry pick your hadith!/You cherry pick from your religion!”
Some hadiths can be read in different ways, so it’s best to look at the outcome.
“Islam and LGBT are not mutually exclusive.”
“But I was taught Islam was the most heterosexist religion.“
”But all Muslims are homophobic!“ (spoiler alert: you’re wrong.)
”But Muslims hate sex - it’s ~dirty~ to them!“ (I would recommend this class for basic 101 on marriage and love [sex] in Islam. Take it with Basyouni.) (See also: x and x)
”Love the sinner, hate the sin, and why that’s bullshit.“
”Should I come out?“ (spoiler alert: that’s up to you!)
”Is there a place for LGBTQ Muslims?“ (Or ”There’s no place for LGBTQ Muslims/no organisations/no hope.“)
”Will LGBTQ Muslims go to hell?“ (spoiler alert: I’m not God, how would I know?)
”But it’s unnatural!“ (lolk)
”There aren’t any gay Imams or Sheikhs, so you’re just making things up!“ (Also here.) (And here.)
“But scholars don’t condone it!”
”But no fatwa was made!“ (It’s Wahabi.)
Indonesian fatwa [link broken, seeking replacement]
A post about other Sheikhs’ opinions.
”But there are no inclusive mosques for LGBT Muslims!“ (Just stop. x)
There is no place for homophobia in Islam.
Let’s repeat that: There is no place for homophobia in Islam.
Ayahs that talk about Prophet Lut.
A closer reading of ayahs re: homosexuality (prev here).
See also: You decide how you interpret your religion.
Homosexuality in Predominately Muslim Countries (and some more on homosexuality in Pakistan)
Pride Parade in Bangladesh (Please remember “hijra” is a slur depending on where in South Asia a person is from – please ask before using it as a catchall!)
Predominately Muslim Countries who are taking steps toward equality. [x] [x, x] [x] [x] [x]
MASGD Statement on SCOTUS Marriage Equality Ruling
Queer Muslim Cinema: Azizah, Illuminations, Coming Out Muslim, A Jihad For Love, I Exist, Al-Nisa [BONUS: Show Al-Nisa and Red Summer (the producer) some love!], Circumstance, Naz + Maalik, Gay Muslims (a documentary produced by Channel 4 in the U.K), City of Borders, The Bubble, Out in the Dark (Palestinian and Israeli fall in love. facebook page), Facing Mirrors (2011; ft. an FtM Iranian), I Accept Me! (2011), Hir Poem, My Child. Sexualities and Queer Imaginaries. Oriented. [Article about Oriented, A Gay Girl in Damascus, and A Sinner in Mecca] [Muslim Drag Queens][Color of Water is trying to get funded]
Queer Muslim Music: Tum Hi Ho (by a drag artist in Lahore).
Queer Muslim Literature: [x] [x] [Four Gay Arabs Break the Silence] [Embracing Ramadhan in the LGBT Muslim Community] [Gaylaxy magazine] [Queer Beirut] [Sex and Desperate Hearts] [Bareed Mista3jil] [Totally Radical Muslims Zine] [5 Queer Magazines] [Not Your Tragic Queer Muslim Story/How to De-Queer Your Apartment] [Brown and Queer in America] [Queer South Asians and the Politics of Family] [A Thing of the West] [Coming Out in the Muslim Community] [Queer and Muslim At the Same Time] [9 articles on being LGBTQ in MENA] [Queering the Middle East] [Seeking Home: The Lives of Gay and Transgender Asylum Seekers of the Middle East] [Trans Muslim Honours His Faith] [Under the Gay Skin of Tehran] [Syrian and Iraqi Members of the LGBT Community Find Safe Haven in Istanbul] [Queer and Muslim] [On Community Spaces and Being A Trans Muslim] [‘Yousef and Farhad’ has been crafted by Algerian-American political cartoonist, Khalil Bendib, and Iranian-American author, Amir Soltani.] [Artist Mohammed Fayaz Draws Queer Muslims of Colour] [Xukia][Why I Can’t Quit Islam]
[Puu] webcomic about indian shi’a cuties
Queer Pakistan LGBTQ Voice and Support Group [and here is a news article]
A good thing to remember is to avoid the self-hatred phase, if you can. Focus on loving yourself, and realising that Allah made you just the way you are, and that you are loved, and that none of this is permanent. If this phase is unavoidable, here are some helpful sites:
Help! I’m losing my Islam
Counseling and Prevention Resources
Supporting someone who self-harms
Suicide and Crisis Hotlines
Online Crisis Network (for those with anxiety which prevents them from talking on the phone)
Online Chat (Arabic) for Queer Arabs
Canadian Queer Muslim Support Group (facebook page)
If you are a student and would like to get Faisal Alam to speak at your uni, or to see if he is coming to your uni soon, click here.
If you would like to attend Faisal Alam’s Retreat for Queer Muslims and their partners, here is more info.
If you would like to book Irshad Manji for an event click here.
If you are a PoC LGBTQ identified Muslim, QWOC is looking for submissions.
If you are from Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, or India and want to share your experiences (anonymously), please click here.
If you are South Asian and queer, consider submitting to Dayaar-e-Yaar! And if you are South Asian, queer, and between 18-25, consider attending this SoCal retreat (deadline for 2015 registration is Dec. 8th, 2014).
If you are a young activist, an independent researcher, a graduate student, or a fresh graduate, consider submitting a paper to the second issue of Kohl, a journal for body and gender in the MENA region that wishes to explore the ways in which the erotic has been used as a means of economic and political exploitation in the MENA, within the region and outside it. Deadline to submit is Aug 2, 2015.
If you can spare some funds, help navigatethestream, a queer Muslim, become an Imam to help the Muslim LGBT community!
Lastly, here is a link if you are NOT a queer Muslim, but want to be a good ALLY! (And here is another on how NOT to be a saviour!) (And here is another on how to support a queer Muslim you happen to be dating!)
Muslim-Queer-Friendly Blogs:
