For years, they have been having to compromise their identity—choosing to either stay deeply closeted or cast off their faith—but increasingly today they are carving a path for themselves, challenging homophobic interpretations of Islam and embracing all parts of who they are.
Lori DeGolyer
Queer* visibility in the heteronormative world has always been an issue, but for queer members of the Muslim community, public refusal of their existence has been especially rife.
Despite the fact that queer Muslims have existed for a millennia and non-normative examples of sexual and gender identities have been present in Arabic literature for centuries, many Muslims are continuously in denial, so much so that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad claimed in 2007 that there weren’t any homosexuals in his country—a region which is predominately Muslim.
It is common for Muslims to believe homosexuality is forbidden under Islam, and in countries like Malaysia, Nigeria, Iran and Saudi Arabia, coming out as a queer member of society can lead to extreme violence and even death.
The story of Lut
The defining reason most Muslims oppose homosexuality lies in classical interpretations of The Story of Lut in the Qur’an, one about a prophet sent to the corrupt city of Sodom to sway the people from immorality and toward faith.
In this tale, three angels are sexually assaulted by vice-ridden villagers, and since the act is male-to-male, many Muslims believe this passage is condemning homosexuality.
However, growing members of the queer Muslim community are providing different interpretations of this story, explaining that the lesson in the Qur’an is not in fact condemning homosexuality but rather the act of sexual assault.
Tawseef Khan, 23, chair of the London-based organization Imaan, a community of support for LGBTQIA Muslims, explains to The Prisma his understanding of the story of Lut, saying, “What had been outlawed was non-consensual acts of sex, or rape, not consensual acts of love.”
The Imaan organisation, founded in 1998, exists with three main purposes: to provide a space for social support for members of the LGBTQIA community who are also Muslim, to raise awareness of the Muslim LGBTQIA struggles in the UK and abroad, and more recently, to provide more structured forms of support, such as counseling.
When Khan first joined Imaan, he says he was struck by the way people were able to play a major role in the queer community, whilst still practicing Islam, holding strong connections with their family and having partners.
“[I always thought] there has to be some compromise, that you have to let go of one—have one and not the other,” says Khan, “but there are ways to harmonize all parts of your identity.”
Another interpretation of the story of Lut is offered by Samar Habib, former professor at the University of Western Sydney, in a recently published book of essays titled, ‘Islam and Homosexuality.’
Habib writes that traditional interpretations of the Qur’an see issue in the act of anal sex, rather than reproving any sexual or gender identity.
Quoting Aleardo Zanghellini, Habib writes, “the sin of the people in Lut was neither homosexuality…nor necessarily rape. Rather… it was same-sex anal sex… [where] the essential valence of same-sex anal sex… was that of enacting relationships of mastership and subordination.”
Here Zanghellini writes that what is condemned in the Qur’an is a sexual act representative of a dominant relationship, not any form of sexual or gender identity.
In traditional Arabic language, there is no actual word for homosexuality. Though, as recent years have shown a dramatic increase in public awareness of queer individuals, a modern Arabic word was invented for gay. Khan says this word translates to abomination in English and references a section in the Qur’an where many people believe homosexuality is denounced. Khan, on the other hand, says it’s very contentious: “In those 1400 years, how can you say that abomination refers to homosexuality? There is no ‘abomination equals homosexuality’ in the Qur’an.”
Providing support
With Imaan, queer Muslims in London are given a space to find solace.
“We don’t prescribe an identity, we just provide the support for [members] to find their own, to find the composition that is best for them.”
At Imaan, Khan says he’s come across a number of young people who have extremely healthy attitudes toward their sexuality and their faith, and have forged their way and created an identity for themselves.
Amongst the atrocities the Imaan organisation encounters through its members, including corrective rape and forced marriage, Imaan has also helped a number of asylum seekers.
In July 2010, gay asylum seekers in the UK won protection from deportation if they faced persecution in their home country, a big step from saying they’ll be fine if they just “live discreetly.”
However, proving a sexual identity to the UK Border Agency isn’t as easy a task as it should be.
In September 2010, Hope Nwachukwu, an openly gay man from Nigeria who fled his homeland to escape extreme persecution, faced forced removal because he hadn’t found a partner since coming to the UK.
“These people are members of our community and have been engaged in our community for a long time. This is proof,” says Khan.
Despite the obstacles involved in securing these rights, the Imaan organisation has had success with approximately 15-16 asylum seekers’ cases over the years.
As with most queer support organisations, Imaan sees a lot of young people who have difficulty with coming out. “Sometimes it goes wrong, sometimes children have been outted at school, sometimes they’ve come out at school themselves and are worried their parents will find out. [These kids are] 13-14-15 and are extremely vulnerable,” says Khan.
To further aid in the coming out process, Imaan is beginning to train other organisations on how to provide support for queer Muslim youth and are even helping a teacher prepare for a class on Islam and homosexuality for a school in London.
Visibility
While it is true that queer people are typically more capable of living secure lives in the western world, that doesn’t mean there isn’t any progress in the east. In fact, while the trans community remains practically unseen in the west, the “third gender” is becoming more highly recognised inthe east.
“The third gender,” otherwise known as eunuchs or hijras, are a community of intersex, trans and homosexual people who identify outside the sex and gender norms and whose history can be traced back to the Mughal Empire. Though it is no easy existence for the hijras community—working as beggars, prostitutes and dancers and facing severe discrimination and abuse—their increased recognition is expanding the space for sex and gender to be understood and accepted in this world.
In 2009, Pakistan’s supreme court ruled that all hijras would be registered as part of a survey in order to further integrate them into society, an effort that shows a true attempt on the side of the government.
Also in 2009, the hijras community won the right to put their gender as “E” for eunuch on their passports and certain government forms, an option many genderqueer westerners would be thrilled to have a likeness of.
While it is vital that queer members of the Muslim community find the space to feel whole and make themselves known, this act alone won’t secure rights for the LGBTQIA community.
In order for any progress to be made for queer Muslims’ rights and for queer people in general, space needs to be made by the general public—by refuting homophobic interpretations of religious readings, by offering support, by deconstructing any homophobic notion encountered, by any means necessary—to ensure queer people gain their basic human rights.
To find out more about the Imaan organisation, visit their website at www.imaan.org.uk.
*NOTE: Throughout this article, the word queer will be used as an umbrella term that encompasses all who sexually identify with a non-normative orientation (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, questioning and intersex) as well as those who identify outside and/or within gender binaries.
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